BSP01: Best Sidekick Possible
by Sobriety
Summary: It's time for the King of Thieves tournament and Shego wants the best Possible sidekick. What will Kim ask in return, and how do Rocket Man and Sarah Bellum fit into the picture? KiGo.
1. The Price of Infamy

**DISCLAIMER:** "Kim Possible" and all characters within (c) The Walt Disney Company and its related entities. Kim Possible created by Mark McCorkle & Bob Schooley. All rights reserved.

**SUMMARY:** It's time for the King of Thieves tournament and Shego wants the best Possible sidekick. What will Kim ask in return, and how do Rocket Man and Sarah Bellum fit into the picture? KiGo.

**TYPE:** Kim/Shego, Slash

**RATING:** MPAA: PG-13

**NOTES:** Set about six months after "Graduation", and acknowledging everything from the TV show as canon. Some of the content will be a bit more 'adult' (i.e. suggestive) than that of the show.

Oh, and there are cuddle buddies that aren't as fluffy as this fic is likely to be. No angst or darkness here, folks.

* * *

"Mom! Dad! I'm home!" Kim Possible sailed in through the front door of her parents' (reconstructed after alien devastation) house. She was thrilled to be back after her first semester of university. Paris was great, but Middleton was home.

Gaining no answer, Kim frowned. Surely her parents wouldn't go out on the day she was due home?

"Mom? Dad? Tweebs?"

Silence.

Hairs prickling on the back of her neck, Kim dropped her bag and silently padded through the kitchen. _You're just being paranoid _she told herself. _Ron got home from Mexico a couple of days ago. They're probably all waiting to spring out and shout "Surprise!"_. The thought of the blond-haired boy brought a wistful smile to the redhead's lips. It had been nearly four months since she had seen him in person, though they'd spoken almost every day.

"Hi bubble butt."

Kim froze. The nickname was her mother's favorite, but the voice. The voice ...

"Shego!"

The green-skinned thief smirked at her from the easy chair in the media room. She held a sheet of paper between two fingers.

"The one and only. Obviously your mom hasn't seen you in a while. 'Beach Ball Butt' might be more accurate, these days."

Kim growled and took a step forward, but Shego raised her free hand and let it flame with plasma.

"Uh uh, Kimmie. Not if you want to hear what happened to your folks." The pale woman waved the plasma dangerously close to the paper.

"Go ahead and burn it. I could just call them."

"Not according to this, you can't." Shego shook the paper. "Out of range, apparently. Here's the deal: you give me what I want, and I'll give you the note from your mother."

Kim clenched her fists. Shego looked too smug for this to be a bluff.

"What do you want?" She gritted at last.

"For this? A triple-shot, no fat, no foam latte."

"Huh?"

"Your folks have a killer espresso machine."

* * *

"Your coffee." Kim scowled, placing the hot beverage on the table beside Shego's chair. _No, not Shego's chair. My dad's chair, which Shego just happens to be sitting on_.

"No biscotti?"

"_Shego._" Kim's tone was dangerous

"Fine, fine." The green woman held up her hands in apparent surrender. "No biscotti. Though the next time I have you get me coffee I'll remember to bring one of those little French maid outfits. Or maybe, since you've been in Paris all this time, you already got one."

"Give. Me. The. Note."

"Keep your shirt on, Princess. Or not, if you prefer." Shego held out the paper, and Kim snatched it angrily.

_Hi Bubble Butt,_

_Your father and I have been called away to an emergency symposium on the effects of space travel on brain chemistry. It may last for a week or more, and there's no phone reception at the site, so we'll be out of touch for a while. The boys have gone to stay with Uncle Slim._

_Be Good. Love you._

_Mom & Dad_

_xxxx_

Kim glared at the paper for several minutes, then glared at Shego. The green woman shrugged.

"Don't blame me for this, Pumpkin. I didn't have anything to do with it."

"Right. My parents suddenly disappear, and you just as suddenly re-emerge after six months of silence. I'm supposed to believe that these two things happening together is just a coincidence?"

"Doy. That's what 'coincidence' means."

"I'm serious, Shego. I haven't heard a single word of you since just after the Lorwardian Invasion, and suddenly you're back. Why now?"

"Simple, Kimmie. I need your help."

* * *

Shego glared at the hooting redhead as the younger woman struggled to draw breath between guffaws of laughter.

"I'm serious, Princess."

"Uh huh." Kim wiped tears of mirth from her eyes. "And you thought the best way to get my help was to come here and tick me off?"

"Nervous habit." Shego seethed. Kim stopped mid chortle.

"Nervous, you?"

"We spent four years kicking each other's asses, and now I have to come to you for help? You bet I'm nervous." Shego licked suddenly dry lips as Kim stared at her levelly. Finally the redhead sighed.

"Okay, what's happened to your brothers this time?"

The green woman gave a surprised bark of laughter.

"It's actually nothing to do with the cretins, for once. Every thirty years, there's a secret tournament. Invitation only, and only the best get invited."

"A martial arts tournament?" Kim frowned. "Because I think I would have been invited –"

"Did I say anything about martial arts? This is the 'King of Thieves' tournament. Only the best thieves in the world are invited. They're allowed whatever they and one sidekick can carry as equipment. There's a bunch of challenges, and the best thief is crowned as King – or Queen."

"So ... what's the sitch?" Kim frowned. "You didn't get an invite and now you want to pay them back by having me bust up the tournament?"

"Oh, I got an invite." Shego smirked as she drew a large golden ticket out of the top of her jumpsuit. "What I _want_ is a sidekick. The best Possible, you might say."

"What do you ..." Kim trailed off as the light of understanding dawned in her eyes. "Oh, hell no. Not a chance."

* * *

"_Anything_?" Kim stressed the word. "I agree to be your sidekick for this tournament and you'll do _anything_?"

"Well, okay. Not _anything_." Shego admitted. "I won't kill anyone –"

"As if I'd ask for that!"

"- or become a so-called _hero_ again. Just about anything short of that, though ..."

"And I have to choose right now?"

"Yes. I'm not having you spring some nasty surprise on me later."

"Fine." Kim started to tick off points on her fingers. "My price comes in three parts. One, from now until the end of the tournament you have to give an honest answer to any question I ask you."

"... agreed."

"Two, from now on, you always have to refer to Ron by his real name."

"Oh, come on ..." Shego saw the expression on Kim's face and sighed. "Agreed. What's three?"

Kim had saved what she considered to be 'the big one' until last.

"Three: you have to give up villainy after the tournament."

"Kimmie, I already told you I wouldn't become a hero."

"Giving up villainy is not the same thing. You don't have to fight crime – though you could probably make good money as a security consultant – you just have to agree not to commit any more."

"Even if I do that, how can you trust me to keep my word?"

Kim started to bristle, then realized that it was a reasonable question.

"I ... don't know. There must be something you value enough to swear by."

"Not really, Pumpkin. About the only thing I care about is my pride, and I already had to tear that to pieces to come begging you for a favor."

"What about your reputation? That's what this is about, right?"

"Well, there's also a cool ten million for winning, but ye –" Shego caught the look on Kim's face. "Oh, did I forget to mention the cash prize?"

"I doubt 'forgetting' had anything to do with it." Kim said dryly. "New, fourth part of my price: the cash goes to set up university scholarships for underprivileged kids."

"You ... damn it. Fine."

"Right. Back on topic: your reputation is a big deal to you, right?"

"Yes ..." Shego could tell she was walking into a trap, but she couldn't see any alternative.

"Right. Then I know exactly how to make sure you keep your word. Follow me."

* * *

"No way, Pumpkin."

"You want my help, Shego? This is the last part of the price."

"It's completely humiliating."

"That's the point. Look at it this way. You keep your word, no-one but me will ever see it."

"You promise? Not even Nerdlinger or the buff –" Shego bit off her word as she saw Kim's eyes narrow. "Or Ron?"

"No-one. You have my word."

"Fine. I'll do it. But only if you promise that if we _don't_ win the tournament, you'll delete it and never mention it to anyone."

"Agreed. Now remember: you have to sound like you mean it."

"I hate you."

"The feeling is mutual." Kim assured the green woman. She raised the Kimmunicator and pointed it at the scowling Shego. "Purple looks good on you. You should wear it more often."

"This outfit is ridiculous. How did you wear it in public and not get arrested?"

"Says she of the one-piece catsuit." Kim smirked. She had to admit that the skirt and top were a bit ... scant ... for Shego's frame.

Shego rolled her eyes and forced her scowl into a broad, plastic smile. _I feel like a complete idiot_. _This tournament better be worth it_. She took a deep breath, thrust her pompom laden hands into the air and completed her humiliation.

"M-A-D! D-O-G! That's how we spell: Vic-to-ry! Go, Mad Dogs, go, go, Mad Dogs, go, Mad Dogs, go, go, Mad Dogs!" The super-thief and reluctant cheerleader dropped into the splits, offered Kim the kind of smile that promised instant death if the redhead spoke a single word, and chirruped, "We're number one!" _Kill me. Kill me now._

* * *

**Author's Notes:** nodrogs's "Stolen Happiness" challenge at KPSlash was the genesis for this fic. Credit him if you've enjoyed it, blame me if you haven't. If you're wondering if the golden ticket thing is a _Last Action Hero_ reference, the answer is "No, it's a Roald Dahl one". I might try to squeeze in a reference to a kid's book in every update, just for fun.

Oh, and in case anyone is concerned about what this new fic means for updates to "Most Wanted": that fic is still active, and I will continue to update it on a regular basis.


	2. Problems with Paperwork

Kim Possible basked in the mellow space between sleep and wakefulness. It was good to be back in her own bed, with the Pandaroo she hadn't been quite brave enough to take to college. She buried her face in his soft fur, breathing a sigh of contentment. _He smells nice. Mom must have washed him before I came home. _The old toy was just as warm and soft as she remembered. Perhaps more so.

"Oh Pandy." She murmured drowsily and clutched him tighter. "It's good to be home. I had the weirdest dream."

"Did it involve groping a certain plasma-wielding babe while she was trying to sleep?"

"_Shego_!" Kim's limbs spasmed in four different directions as she threw herself backwards out of the bed, landing with a solid _thump_ on the floor.

"The one and only." The green woman rolled over to the edge of the bed and peered down at her. "That was a pretty loud landing, Princess. All that French food must have agreed with you."

"Shut up."

"Now don't get snitty with me. We're both fully clothed, like I promised. Besides, _you're_ the one who glomped onto _me_ about three o'clock this morning. And it's your fault we're sharing a bed in the first place."

Kim glowered. _I've never wanted to kick her butt so bad_.

It was especially annoying that everything the green woman said was true.

* * *

"What's this?" Kim had asked approximately thirty hours earlier, and half an ocean away, as she picked up the brown envelope Shego had thrown down on the living room coffee table.

"Your paperwork for the tournament. You have to fill it out before they'll let you on the island."

"This thing is held on an island? Is it going to have giant Buddha statues and bad guys with magic sunglasses?"

Shego looked at Kim like she had two heads.

"Was that supposed to make any sense?"

"Never mind." Kim tipped out the contents of the envelope. "Wow ... that's a lot of forms."

"They take security for the tournament very seriously. Never been a single breach in all the times its run. Also, the public liability premiums would be a nightmare without it."

"So you're sure this tournament is legit, then."

"As legit as a tournament to crown the world's best thief can be, yeah. Why?"

"Well, I just figured ... invite all the world's best thieves to one place. Catch 'em all at the same time. Seems like a great idea for the authorities to try."

Shego looked surprised, then impressed.

"I knew you'd make a good sidekick. That's thinking crooked, Kimmie."

The redhead scowled.

"New rule: don't compliment me."

"I think I can manage that." Shego smirked. "But you don't have to worry about being arrested –"

"I wasn't. I was planning to help the cops when they turned up."

"Damn. I might have to break that your rule after all. That's very nearly evil. Sorry Cupcake, but if you're planning to call the good guys down on this thing, you'll have your work cut out for you. The organizers have been dealing with crooks for thousands of years. They're used to people trying to betray them. Better to just help me win it. I want my name up there with the greats: Autolycus, Raffles, Ezekial Morrow –"

"I've never even _heard_ of that last guy."

"That shows how good he was." Shego declared. "Anyway, get those forms filled out so we can get you registered as my sidekick." The green woman smiled smugly at the last word. Kim rolled her eyes.

"Fine, fine. Though I don't know why they couldn't put all this on computer."

"With hackers like Nerdlinger or those CHERUB brats around? Paper forms are much safer. Only a real thief can steal those."

"Whatever." Kim sighed, pulling the forms toward her. "I've got something for you, too." She gestured at a backpack she'd left on the couch.

Shego made a show of pretended embarrassment.

"A present? For me? And it's not even Christmas. What is it?"

"A spare set of my mission equipment. Rocket-skate boots, grapple gun, jetpack, laser lipstick –"

"Laser _what_?"

"Look, it's a copy of everything I take on missions, except for the clothes. I know you usually just rely on your powers, but I figure we'll need every edge we can find if this tournament is as big a deal as you say."

"Wow ... you really do want us to win this thing, don't you?"

"I don't believe in doing things by halves. Plus if we win, you have to go straight."

Shego smirked salaciously.

"You only mean 'straight' in terms of the law, right? Not anything else. Because I never agreed to that."

Kim sighed.

"Okay, what's with all the pretend lesbian stuff, today? I'm not fifteen any more. You're not going to embarrass me with lame stuff like this."

"What makes you think it's pretend?"

Kim opened her mouth to make a caustic reply, but something in Shego's expression stopped her. The tilt of the green woman's slightly curled lip was as snide as ever, but it seemed forced, like the question was more important than she wanted to let on. _Is she really ... ?_

"But all those buff guys you've had on your arm ..."

"Beards. Jeez, Princess. Didn't the time you tracked me down on that cruise give you a hint?"

Kim was confused.

"Should it?"

"Doy. It was an 'Olivia' cruise. Seems like you can take the girl out of Middleton, but not the Middleton out of the girl."

"... but ... what about when Drakken hugged you? You didn't seem to mind."

"Look, Dr D's okay. He's like a slightly less irritating brother to me. But just because his flower gets a little fresh when he's drunk doesn't mean I want to sleep with him."

"So ... you're gay?"

"As a character on _The_ _L Word_."

"But you liked Mr Barkin ..."

"_That_ wasn't _me_." Shego's tone turned icy. Kim blinked. _Okay, that's a sore point. And a reminder: this is Shego, not Miss Go. I need to keep on my guard better than I have been doing._

"Uh ... so why are you telling me this now?"

"Because the organizers of this tournament are thorough, and they like to mess with the competitors to throw them off their games. They're going to know my sexual preferences, and they're probably going to try making them an issue between us. So this is a pre-emptive strike on my part, because I really need to know _now_ if my being a lesbian will be an issue for you."

"It's no big." _It is __**so**__ the drama_.

Shego didn't look wholly convinced, but eventually she shrugged.

"Look Pumpkin, I want to win this thing. We need to be on the same page to do that. You have my word – assuming you're willing to take it – that while I might tease you, I won't do anything more. I know you don't swing my way, and that you have a boyfriend -"

"Oh, I'm not seeing anyone."

"Huh?"

Kim waved it off.

"Four month old news. Short version: long distance relationships don't work. Long version: none of your business. Just like your sexuality is none of mine."

"So why do you care what I call ... Ron?"

"He's still my best friend, Shego."

"Oh. So not a nasty bust-up then?"

"Not your business, remember?"

"Right. Anyway: you don't play for my team, and even if you did, I'm not interested."

"Oh." Kim was relieved that the older woman wasn't crushing on her. _That would have been awkweird._ Still, it was a little insulting to be told she wasn't desirable.

"Nothing personal, Kitten." Shego seemed to read her thoughts. "You're cute and all, but just too clean-cut and wholesome for my tastes. So, are you okay with this?"

"About the gay thing? Totally." Kim white lied. _Not totally, but I can deal with it_. "About the four years of trying to plasma-fry my head? That's still an issue."

Shego managed a rather wan-sounding chuckle.

"Thanks. Now I'll make us some coffee while you fill in those forms, _sidekick_."

Kim fought the urge to give the green woman the finger, and set to work on the first form. Name. She briefly thought about putting a pseudonym, then remembered what Shego had said about the thoroughness of the tournament organizers. _Besides, my face has been on TV a bunch of times. Someone at the tournament will recognize me, anyway._ She resolutely wrote "Kim Possible" in the space. Date of Birth and other personal information followed, and then she reached the sixth field.

"Relationship to Contestant. Partner or Sidekick?" The redhead pursed her lips and scowled. _Shego only ever mentioned being a 'sidekick'!_ But then, Shego wasn't the one filling in the form. Kim grinned and firmly circled the word "Partner".

* * *

"I thought it meant 'partner' in the sense of being equals in a team!" Kim fumed as she levered herself from the floor.

"Oh Pumpkin." Shego shook her head, her voice half-choked by suppressed laughter. "That's not how criminals work. There's always a hierarchy. 'Partner' means bed buddy."

"You're loving this, aren't you?" Kim accused.

Shego shrugged.

"Maybe a little. Look, I'd ask the organizers to swap us to a room with two beds, if I thought they'd actually do it, but I guarantee they're loving this even more than you think I am. And I _did_ offer to sleep on the couch."

"Actually, you offered to let _me_ sleep on the couch."

"Close enough." Shego gave a shameless smirk. Despite herself, Kim felt her mood lighten a little, which was worrying in its own right. _It's too easy to forget she's a villain._

"You're evil, you know that?"

"Mmmm ... flattery will get you everywhere, Kimmie." Shego purred, then laughed when Kim flushed bright pink_._

* * *

**Author's Notes:** I'm currently working on "Most Wanted", a KiGo fic where Shego is straight, or at least she starts that way, and have plans for other stories where she is gay (or bi) and into Kim, so I thought it might be interesting in this one to make her gay, but _not_ interested in Kim ... at least initially. I'm sure she will come to her senses over time!

Off to work on the next chapter of "Most Wanted" now.


	3. Familiar Faces

Kim luxuriated in the hot spray of the shower, letting the steaming water ease some of the tension out of her muscles. Tension that was building up faster than normal. _This whole sitch is ferociously weird. At least it can't get any more bizarre._

"Oh man, I can't believe I just thought that. I'm totally jinxed now." The redhead slapped her forehead on her palm, then jumped as there was a thumping on the bathroom door. "Don't come in!" She squeaked, trying vainly to cover herself with her hands.

"Wasn't planning to, Princess." Shego's tone was amused, and Kim didn't need to see the green woman to picture the smug smile on those broad, dark lips. "I already saw all I needed through the keyhole."

"_What?_"

"Kidding, jeez." If anything, Shego's tone became more smug.

Kim sighed. _She only keeps rubbing in that she's gay because I react to it. Gotta stop giving her the satisfaction and treat it like no big._

"What do you want, Shego?"

"Other than a lifetime supply of hot babes and to win this tournament? Just to tell you that the coffee's ready and our itinerary for the tournament has arrived. We can go over it as soon as you get your ass out of the shower."

"Why do you spend so much time talking about my butt?"

"It's a big topic. Lotta ground to cover."

Kim reddened and stomped her foot, nearly overbalancing when it slipped on the wet shower floor.

"I hate you!"

"I hate you too. Now hurry up. Your coffee's getting cold."

* * *

Ten minutes later Kim sat cross-legged on the end of the bed, now dressed and with her hair up in a towel. Shego was half-sitting, half-sprawling in the room's only chair, a thick ivory-colored card in her hand.

"I wanna see." Kim whined.

"Wait your turn." Shego grumped, then made the mistake of glancing up. The full force of the puppy dog pout hit her right between the eyes. "Look, making goofy faces isn't going to work."

The pout intensified.

"If the wind changes you'll stay that way."

Kim went to pout factor 11.

"Gah! Okay! You read the damn card." Shego frisbee'd it across to the redhead, who snatched it out of the air.

"Please and thank you." She scanned the card. "So, welcoming reception this afternoon. Beach barbeque tomorrow. 'Bring your swimming costume?' Well, _duh_. Farewell dinner on day three." She frowned.

"What's the matter, Princess?" Shego asked as she took a sip of her coffee. The green woman frowned at the slightly burned, bitter taste. "Or did you just try the coffee? This stuff is lousy."

"There's nothing on here about the tournament itself. When is that supposed to happen?"

"They won't give us any warning about the competition." The green woman explained. "We might get a mission in the middle of the night, or the middle of one of those functions. Or while you're hogging all the hot water again, tomorrow."

"You want me to time you when you have to wash _your_ hair?" Kim eyed the other woman's long, dark mane, then returned her attention to the card. "Oh! It's got all the competitors on here, too."

"I _have_ read it."

"Shego and Partner?" Kim frowned and shot the pale woman a grim look. "I don't even merit a name?"

"I only asked you two days ago!" Shego protested. "They probably printed those weeks ago!"

"Oh." Kim nodded, then paused. "Wait, if they did that, how could they know whether you had a 'partner' or a 'sidekick'?"

"I hadn't thought of that." Shego admitted. Kim gave her a suspicious look. "Really, Kimmie. Honest answer rule, remember? I had nothing to do with it. I guess maybe the organizers figured whoever I brought, they'd mess with us by sticking us in a bed together. They probably did it to all the others, too. Except any that actually are partners. They probably put those guys in separate beds ... maybe separate rooms."

"Why would they do that?"

"Doy. They're criminals. Evil, remember?" Shego rolled her eyes.

"Fine. I'll believe you." Kim's tone belied her words, but she dropped the subject and turned her attention to who their competitors would be. "Wait a minute ... Senor Senior Junior and Bonnie Rockwaller? I thought you said this tournament was for the best of the best?"

"It is."

"Then how does _Junior_ get an invite?"

"Check the small print at the bottom."

"Huh? Oh. 'Prize support for this year's tournament provided by Senor Senior Senior'. That's how Junior got in? But that's ..."

"Immoral? Unethical?" Shego smirked and rolled her eyes. "Graft and corruption at the King of _Thieves_ tournament. Why are you surprised?"

"I hate you."

"Hate you more. Who's next on the list?"

"Rocket Man and Sarah Bellum." Kim read. "_Rocket Man_?"

"Dumb name, but dumb or not, also one of the biggest names of the eighties."

"I've never heard of him."

Shego shook her head.

"I'd say I was surprised, but you didn't even know I'd been a hero, and that was a lot more recent than the Science Rogues."

"They stole scientific items?"

"They used science to commit their crimes. Rocket Man's main deal was his rocket pack, but I think he had an electro-gun for stunning people, and some kind of helmet with science-y stuff."

"Is 'science-y stuff' the technical term?"

"Hey, you'd never even _heard_ of the guy!"

"So what were they like?"

"How would I know? I'm only six years older than you, Princess. I never met them."

"Yeah, but you obviously heard stories." Kim tapped the card on her crossed legs. "From the sound of that electro-gun thing, they didn't kill people."

"No. From what I've read, they were more like a couple of kids playing the fool than anything else. They were big on pranks."

"Pranks? Do they have _any_ quality control standards on these invitations?"

"Well, the Science Rogues' idea of a prank was to break into Fort Knox and re-arrange the gold bricks in the vaults into a gigantic replica of a human brain."

"Oh. That's ... a pretty big prank." Kim admitted

"Ya think?" Shego examined her empty mug then jiggled it toward the redhead. "You want another?"

"Of that awful stuff? No thanks."

"When did you develop taste buds?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Doy! You used to eat at Bueno Nacho!"

"It wasn't that bad."

"Yes, it was."

"Whatever." Kim flipped a hand airily. "So Rocket Man had his jetpack and his electro-gun. What was Sarah Bellum's deal? From her name ... mental powers?"

"Not unless you count her sexy outfits as a form of mind control."

Kim smirked.

"Sounds like someone has a crush."

"I don't think she plays for my team, Pumpkin. Rumor was that she and ol' Rocket Pants were an item."

"Rumor was that you and Drakken were, too."

"Ugh. Don't remind me. Anyway, I don't know about any powers, but she had brains and moxie to spare. Story is she was working in a mayor's office somewhere – sounds like good training to be a crook, to me – and caught Rocket Man in the middle of one of his jobs. They hit it off, and she started accompanying him."

"So what happened to them? They were notorious sorta-criminals all through the eighties and then ... ?"

"Around '88 or '89 they vanished ... pretty much overnight. Never heard from again."

"No-one knows why?"

"Lots of theories. No proof. It'll be cool to meet them. And then beat their wrinkly old asses. Who else is there?"

"I'm glad you're so confident." Kim laughed, "Next is Falsetto Jones and Camille Leon."

"Jones, I know. He's good. Camille Leon ... isn't she an heiress?"

"She was disinherited. She's also got shape-shifting powers. Not a bad trick for a thief. And if she's gay you're in luck. You can be with any woman you want and never cheat on her."

"You know, I think I liked high school Kimmie better than this new model. She gave me less lip."

"Oh, like you wouldn't want a little lip from me." Kim suddenly turned bright pink as she realized what she'd said. She ducked her head, red tresses tumbling down to shield her crimson face.

Shego sat stunned in her chair, grateful that Kim was too embarrassed to look her in the eye. She didn't blush as easily as the younger woman, but she'd felt the heat rise to her own face, as well. Shego had meant it when she'd said the redhead had never interested her sexually. Too straight-laced, in all senses of the term. _Kimmie's changed ... it's intriguing. Intriguing isn't good._ _Definitely time to change the subject._

"Anyone else competing?"

"Uh ..." A flustered Kim fumbled with the card, then paused. "There's _really_ a Sheela of the Leopard People?"

"You think some hack writer could come up with that by himself? Who's she teaming with?"

"Manx?"

"Crazy Irish cat-burglar. Those two had some success in the nineties, but they're lightweights next to you and I."

"Careful, Shego. That sounded suspiciously like a compliment."

"Couldn't have been. I'm not supposed to give you any of those, remember? That was everyone, wasn't it?"

"Yeah. Though there's a note that some guy called 'Artemis Fowl' declined the invitation to participate. Hey ... this card says the gala is 'crime formal'. What does that mean?"

"It means full mission gear. A chance for everyone to see the competition in detail."

"_Full_ mission gear? So jetpack, rocket skates, the whole works?"

"Yep. Though in your case I'll also accept a French Maid's outfit, if you have one around."

Shego bolted for the kitchenette. Sure, the coffee was terrible, but it was better than being around when Kim got over her outrage enough to recover voluntary muscle control.

* * *

"Ah, Ms Shego and Ms Possible, as always, a pleasure." Senor Senior Senior greeted the two women as they stepped out of the elevator several hours later. "You are the last of our guests to arrive for the reception."

"_Somebody_ had to wash her hair." Kim shot an 'I told you so' glance at Shego, who shrugged unconcernedly.

"So we're fashionably late. So not the drama."

"It's rude!" Kim protested. "New rule: don't use my catch-phrases."

"What's rude is all these new rules of yours." Shego rolled her eyes. "You see what I have to put up with to win this thing, Triple-S?"

"I think you will find the competition most formidable, Ms Shego. Victory is far from assured."

"Especially with you around to weight the odds in Junior's favor." Shego stated without rancor.

"I am sure I do not know what you mean." Senor Senior Senior kept his expression blank. "This tournament will be conducted with its usual impartiality and fairness."

"That's what we're afraid of." Kim snarked.

"Ooh, Kitten's showing her claws!" Shego smirked at the redhead, who colored a little at the attention. "So where to we go from here, Triple-S?"

"Just follow the hall to the double-doors, the usher will announce you to the ballroom."

"They have a _ballroom_?" Kim wondered as she trotted along the hallway, trying to keep up with the taller woman's stride. "How big _is_ this place?"

"No idea, Pumpkin." Shego shrugged in a manner that made it clear she didn't really care. "They had blindfolds on us for most of the trip, remember? Pretty big, though. They need a lot of room to stage the tournament events."

The double-doors opened onto a stone stair case, winding down into a large room with a high, vaulted ceiling. Garishly dressed people milled around on the floor below.

A green-uniformed usher took Shego's invitation.

"Shego and Partner." His amplified voice boomed out across the room. Kim, noting an emphasis on the word 'Partner', shot him a dirty look.

"No hurting the hired help, Kimmie."

"There's a lot of people here." Kim changed the subject as they made their way down the stairs. "I guess some of them are the other contestants ... that guy with the weird silver box on his back must be Rocket Man."

"Yeah, which means the foxy redhead next to him must be Sarah Bellum." Shego's tone was warmly appreciative.

Kim picked out the statuesque figure in question and frowned.

"Oh _please_. A silver evening gown? Like that's a _mission outfit_."

"You really do have your claws out tonight." Shego sounded appreciative.

Kim huffed in response, then glanced around again.

"So there are only eight other contestants. Who are these other people?"

"Robots."

"Robots? Really?"

"No. Well, not all of them. 'Robots' is just what they've been called for the last hundred years or so. Most of them are flesh and blood people. They're all carrying mini-cameras, though. Most of the organizers prefer to keep their identities secret, so they send proxies in their place. The last couple of times, they've also sold virtual tickets to the event. A staff member represents you, carrying a camera, and you get a live video feed of what's happening. I wouldn't be surprised if your Nerdlinger has a proxy here."

"Why would Wade buy a ticket?"

"For intel on criminals? Or, you know -" Shego brazenly adjusted her bosom in its catsuit. "- just for the hot women in lycra."

Kim was about to make a retort when another voice broke into the conversation.

"Oh look, Junior. It's Quim Possible and her new lezzie friend."

Shego growled. Kim grabbed the green woman's arm to prevent a fight, and sighed. _Well, the night can only get better after this ... right?_

"Bonnie. Still attending those Narcissists Anonymous meetings, or did you get fed up of other people hogging the podium?"

"You know, Kim ..." her tanned high school nemesis ignored - or perhaps did not understand - the insult. "... I thought you were desperate when you started dating Stoppable. But now I see that sorry excuse for a guy was just your way of training to date real girls."

A dozen rebuttals danced through Kim's head, but Bonnie would see any sort of denial as a moral victory. _Only one thing will shut her up. Gotta hope Shego plays along._

"Oh, Bonnie ..." The redhead slipped her arm around Shego's waist and pulled the startled green woman closer to her. "... don't be jealous just because I was never interested in your fake boobs and flat ass. Still, at least Junior here will be able to afford all the other surgery you need."

The redhead smirked as Bonnie nearly dissolved in rage. The smirk very nearly slipped when Shego played along just a lot more convincingly than Kim expected, leaning down to softly nip at the redhead's ear with her teeth, while her hand - _Not gonna blush. Don't want to give Shego the satisfaction._

Kim and Shego sailed past the still sputtering brunette and her perplexed yellow-shirted escort, the redhead managing to keep her smirk in place until they were several steps away.

"Kimmie, that was a thing of beauty." The green woman chuckled.

"Shego?"

"Yes Pumpkin?"

"Get your hand off my butt before I break your fingers."

"Yes, Pumpkin." Shego slid her hand up to the redhead's waist.

"That's _not_ what I meant."

"Tough, Kitten. I backed your play with Ms Bitchy, so now you owe me. Besides, the more comfortable we seem together the more it'll tick off whoever stuck us with only one bed."

"Uh huh." Kim rolled her eyes. "You're just doing it because you know it ticks _me _off."

"That _is_ an added bonus." Shego shamelessly admitted.

"Whatever." Kim huffed, then noticed which direction Shego was taking them. "For someone who isn't crushing, you seem awfully keen to meet Sarah Bellum."

"I'm only human, Kimmie." Was Shego's rejoinder. "Look at her!"

"That's her idea of 'crime formal'?." Kim snarked. "How's she going to run in those heels?"

It seemed someone else had asked a similar question, because as they drew near, they heard the statuesque older redhead give a throaty laugh.

"The heels are retractable, and the gown's made of a special polymer that responds to specific electrical stimuli. I can shorten it to a miniskirt in less than a second. I'm surprised it fits so well after all these years, though I did have to take it out a little in the bust."

"I bet you did." Shego muttered under her breath, her tone frankly appraising.

Despite the quiet tone, Sarah Bellum seemed to register that someone was behind her. She began to turn toward the two younger women. For her part, Kim barely noticed Shego's comment, her mind on other matters. _That's weird. Sarah Bellum sounds just like ..._

"_MOM?_"

"_Kimmie-cub?_"

* * *

**Author's Note: **Did I actually manage to surprise anyone with the identity of Sarah Bellum? Probably not, since it was referenced in the challenge that spawned this fic.

Six months in Paris has made Kim a lot less sheltered than she was, it seems, though her mouth sometimes runs away with her.

Next time: A Possible Family Reunion!


	4. Meet the Parents

"What are _you_ doing here?" Kim and her mother both exclaimed at once.

"Jinx, you both owe me a soda!" Shego grew even paler than usual when subjected to two intense redheaded stares. "Uh ... just trying to lighten the mood, folks."

Kim belatedly realized that the green woman's arm was still around her waist. She shoved Shego's hand away.

"This isn't what it looks like!" The teen hero assured her mother. "Shego needed a sidekick and she promised to give up villainy if I helped her! ... Wait ... Why am I explaining who _I'm_ with? Who's this Rocket guy? Does dad know about him?"

Despite the shock of the situation, Mrs Dr Possible laughed.

"You might say that." She turned to her left, addressing a helmeted figure wearing a shiny silver rocket pack. "Dear, if I could interrupt your discussion of 'Space Passage' for a moment?"

"What is it, honey?" A voice all too familiar to Kim asked as the figure turned. "Sweet Ion Drive rockets! Kimberley Anne! What are you doing here, young lady?"

"What am _I_ doing here? What are you two doing here?" Kim's voice rose as she spoke, and Shego found herself in the unfamiliar and uncomfortable position of trying to calm a situation.

"Pumpkin, I think there's a perfectly rational explanation for why your parents are here, if you stop and think about it."

Kim paused.

"Because they've been mind controlled as part of someone's crazy plot to take over the world?"

"... okay, I guess by the standards of our lives, that _is_ a rational explanation. But it's not the one I was thinking of."

"We're the Science Rogues, Kimmie." Her mother explained gently, reaching out to touch Kim's arm. The younger redhead batted the older woman's hand away, her green eyes blazing. Shego watched with concern. _Aw man, Kimmie's gonna say something stupid._

"You two were _supervillains_? Where did every 'always do your best to help other people' lecture I got growing up come from? What the fu-"

Shego grabbed Kim's shoulders and kissed her. Hard.

For a moment, Kim was too surprised to react, then she pushed the green woman away, angrily, and slammed a forearm into Shego's mouth. The older woman staggered back a step, then reached up to touch her quickly swelling lip.

"I guess I deserved that. Sorry, Kimmie, but that seemed the best way to stop you from saying anything you might regret to your parents."

"You mean the parents you just _kissed me_ in front of?"

"Oh ... oh shit."

* * *

A few minutes later, with tempers not quite so high, and a gawking circle of spectators shooed away by Shego's none-too-subtle plasma diplomacy ("Family Reunion! Private time! Move it or lose it!"), the three Possibles found a quiet corner in which to continue their reunion.

"Don't even think about sneaking off, Shego." Mrs Dr Possible's tone was stern. The green woman sighed. A quiet retreat had definitely been her plan.

"Yes ... uh, Dr Possible ..."

"Call me Sarah, Shego. It's who I am while I'm here, and you're a grown woman who obviously knows our daughter _quite_ well."

"Yes ... uh, Sarah."

"Why didn't you ever tell me about this?" Kim interrupted, pointing at her parents' costumes. The Drs Possible both sighed, exchanging a rueful glance. Her mother answered.

"At first you were too young, Kimmie. And then you became a hero -"

"You thought I would try to take you in?" The younger Possible was incredulous.

Her father shook his head.

"Of course not, Kimmie-cub. We were just ashamed -"

Kim blanched.

"Ashamed ...of me?"

"No! Never!" Her parents answered at once. Mrs Possible immediately embraced her daughter tightly, kissing the top of the younger woman's head. Mr Possible gestured for his wife to continue. "We were ashamed at what we had been, when we were your age. We had gifts like yours, and we wasted them on silly pranks."

"But ... you guys were my inspiration to become a hero. Dad inventing things to help the world, you saving lives ..."

"I'm not saying we never learned responsibility. Just that it took us a little longer. When we were your age ... well, we were more like your brothers."

Kim gave a theatrical shudder at the thought, then grew serious.

"You never hurt anyone, right?"

"No, but we never helped them, either. We just pulled crazy stunts because we enjoyed them."

"Like brain sculptures in Fort Knox?"

"That was one of them, yes." Mr Dr Possible shot Shego a look, and the green woman blushed a deeper verdant shade. "I see someone has been giving you a history lesson."

"Only a short one." For the first time since the conversation started, Kim managed a smile. "So what made you guys quit?"

"You." Her mother replied.

"Me?"

"We stopped because we realized I was three months pregnant. At first, we just meant to take a break until you were born. But when we finally held you, we knew we had to make caring for you our first priority."

"Typical Kimmie." Shego snorted. "Not even a day old and she ends two great criminals' careers."

"Wait ..." Kim frowned. "Mom, if you didn't stop until you were three months' pregnant ... does that mean I was kinda 'there' when ..."

"That you involuntarily came along on a few of our excursions?" Her mother smiled. "I guess you did. I don't think you can be considered an accomplice, though."

"Actually, you were almost certainly _conceived_ on a caper." Mr Dr Possible mused. In best absent-minded scientist fashion, his brain was more occupied with the facts than considering his audience. "At the top of the Eiffel Tower. Or the bottom, depending on your perspective. We'd turned it upside down, at the time."

Kim made a strangled sound as her mother covered her father's mouth.

"Dear, I think that's a little more detail than our daughter needs right now."

"It's a little more than I needed, too." Shego muttered, then squeaked as Mrs Dr Possible fixed her with a glare. The green woman slapped a hand over her mouth, mortified at the timid noise she'd made. _Aw man, Kimmie's never going to let me hear the end of that_.

"As for you, young lady." The older redhead gave the pale woman a hard stare. "No more kissing my daughter without her permission."

"Yes ma'am." _Wait ... her __**permission**__?_

"Mom, Shego and I aren't -"

"I know, honey." Mrs Possible assured her daughter. "Your reaction to the kiss made that quite clear. But you know that if you were gay, we'd still love you just as much, right?"

"Mom!" Kim flushed fiery red. "Why are we even talking about this?"

"Well, you were such a tomboy as a child that there _were_ times we wondered -" Mr Possible started, cutting off abruptly when his wife glared at him. Kim, if possible, turned even more red as she heard Shego give a throaty chuckle. The redhead hastened to speak over the green woman's mirth.

"So not the drama, dad! I like boys."

Her father frowned.

"Just as long as you don't like them _too_ much."

"Dad!"

"Honey!"

"Hey folks, it looks like Triple-S has an announcement." Shego gladly changed the subject, pointing up to the staircase, where the European billionaire had emerged, microphone in hand.

As her parents' attention turned in Senor Senior Senior's direction, Kim sidled up next to the green woman.

"Why did you stop me, earlier?"

"You mean the kiss?" Shego quirked her lips when Kim glared at her, but then gave a reluctant nod. "Maybe I just fancied a taste. Strawberry lip gloss. A classic."

"Shego ..."

"It was pure self-interest, Kimmie. If you'd said something dumb to your parents you'd be an emotional wreck for the rest of the competition. I want to win this thing, remember? Don't worry, I still hate you."

Kim reached out and very briefly squeezed Shego's hand, then let go.

"Thanks. I hate you too."

* * *

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen." The debonair billionaire began, "As some of you may know, the introductory speech for the previous two tournaments has been given by Spiff, the oldest surviving victor of a previous event. Alas, Spiff passed on a few years after the last tournament, engaged in one last daring escapade. I am an unworthy replacement for a true master of our craft, but I hope you will indulge me for a few minutes nonetheless."

"I still say he sounds like that actor off 'Space Passages'." Mrs Possible mused.

Her husband frowned.

"I just don't see it." He insisted. Their quiet exchange went unheard by anyone except Kim, who had to clamp down on an instinctive 'Shush'. _I don't think mom and dad would be too impressed by that_.

"Firstly, let me welcome you all, and congratulate you on your selection, for participation in the one hundred and twelfth 'King of Thieves' tournament." Senior declared, unaware of the debate his speech had reopened between the Doctors Possible. "This is the longest running competitive event in human history. The tournament was held in Plato's Greece and Caesar's Rome. It was held in Arthur's England and Napoleon's France; in the midst of a dozen wars, it has endured. Simply by being invited, you have proven yourself amongst the world's best."

The older Senor Senior produced a slip of paper from his pocket and began to read from it, his tone formal.

"It is my responsibility at this time to remind you all of some of the rules of the competition. First, this speech marks the beginning of the tournament. At any point after I finish, you may be summoned to participate in your event. No warning will be given. You must be constantly alert. Each team will have one, and only one, opportunity to impress the judges, and the decision of those judges is final. No responsibility is accepted for any injuries sustained by the competitors. The last event will commence no earlier than four hours before the farewell dinner, which is scheduled to be held forty eight hours from now. You are free to discuss your experiences in the tournament with other competitors, but not with any other persons."

Folding the paper, Senior slipped it back into his pocket and smiled slightly. When he continued, it was in a much more relaxed and conversational tone.

"Once again, my congratulations for the skill and ability you have already demonstrated in order to be invited here. As a proud father, I am particularly pleased by the invitation extended to my son, Junior –"

Shego muttered something vulgar, forcing Kim to clap a hand over her mouth to smother laughter, but the exchange went unnoticed by the billionaire.

"- as I am sure that your loved ones would all be proud of you." Senior's gaze drifted over the three Possibles as he spoke, his eyes dancing with amusement as Kim and her parents exchanged glances. He then turned his attention to Shego. "Also, I understand there have been some complaints about the quality of the coffee in your rooms. I have arranged for an alternate supply. I hope you all find it more to your liking. And now, I declare the tournament open!"

Kim tensed, half-expecting to be instantly teleported into some dangerous location or death trap, but instead the guests began drifting back into small clumps, resuming their earlier conversations.

"Huh. That was anticlimactic." _But then, I've had quite enough surprises for one day._

* * *

**Author's Note:** Extra Special Internet Cookies for anyone who recognizes the kids' book reference in this chapter. I'd be very surprised if anyone Rumbles it (that's a clue, that is). Edit to add: It's not Calvin and Hobbes.

Kim's learned something new about her parents, but there are still a lot of questions she hasn't asked them. Will she like the answers when she does? Will she _get_ answers when she does?


	5. Beach Banter

The next morning, the sun blazed high in the azure heavens, the deep blue expanse broken by only a few picture-perfect white clouds.

"We must be in the southern hemisphere." Kim remarked as she dumped a bag – filled with mission gear – next to one of the plastic beach recliners.

"Huh?" Shego sleepily opened an eye. She'd been relaxing in the sun for nearly an hour, waiting for the fair-skinned redhead to meticulously apply sunscreen to every exposed inch of flesh. She smirked as she surveyed the younger woman's pink and white one-piece swimming costume. "Nice outfit, Pippi Longstocking. Were they all out of adult sizes at Smarty Mart the day you brought that?"

Kim pointedly ignored the comment.

"It's early December, but the weather's hot. We must be in the southern hemisphere."

"Whatever." Shego yawned.

"Shego!" Kim stomped her foot – ineffectually, since they were on loose sand – then dropped down onto her recliner and leaned forward so that she could speak softly and not be overheard. "I thought you wanted to win this thing?"

"Yeah. What's your point?"

"Information is power. Anything we can work out about this place might help us."

The green woman gave a lazy smile.

"I knew it was a good idea to bring you along."

"So I could point these things out to you?"

"So you could _do_ them for me and leave me to soak up the rays."

"Ugh!" Kim threw her hands in the air, then winced. Shego raised a quizzical eyebrow.

"Not that I care, but what's wrong?"

"My neck and shoulder are a bit sore this morning. The couch isn't very comfortable."

"I told you that you could sleep in the bed."

"_You_ were in the bed! In your underwear!"

"So?"

"So after what happened the first night, not a chance."

"Hey, it's not _my_ fault your subconscious finds me irresistible." Shego smirked at Kim's stuttered denial, then swung herself into a seated position and gestured imperiously at the redhead's recliner. "Lie down. I'll see what I can do about your shoulder and neck."

Kim narrowed her eyes.

"I thought you didn't care about me."

"About you, I don't. About winning, I do. And that means I need you at a hundred percent."

"Do you know _anything_ about physiotherapy?"

"Not a thing. But I know a whole lot about full body massage." Shego leered. Kim squeaked and backed away, nearly falling backwards off the recliner, prompting a peal of laughter from the green woman. "Kidding, Cupcake. You pick up a lot of aches and sprains in my line of work. I've learned a few things about treating them."

Kim wavered, clearly uncomfortable with the idea, but tempted by the promise of an end to the soreness in her neck and back. Finally, she gave a cautious nod.

"Okay. But no sneak attacks or sudden groping."

"Villain's honor." Shego rolled her eyes. Kim huffed at the response, but eventually lay face down on the recliner and swept her hair to one side. Shego straddled the smaller woman's back, taking care to keep all her weight on her own knees. As the green woman began the massage with Kim's neck, the redhead asked a question.

"No-one's been taken away for their event yet?"

"If they have, they're not saying."

"You mingled more than me last night. What do you think of the other competitors?"

"Your folks are going to be tough to beat."

"... you swear you didn't know my parents were the Science Rogues?"

"Trust me, Kimmie. If I'd known that, I'd have been a lot nicer to them whenever we met."

"So you really think they're that good?" Kim started to twist to look at Shego, but the green woman forcibly checked the movement.

"Lie still. And yes, they're really that good."

"What happened to 'beating their wrinkly old butts'?"

"Kimmie, I can't vouch for your father, and don't want to, but your mother has the ass of a twenty year old."

"... we will never talk about this subject again."

"I tell you, if there's even a single wrinkle there, I'll –"

"Were you doing all this ogling before or after she made you whimper like a scolded puppy?"

"... we will never talk about this subject again."

"Good call. Not that I understand why mom scares you so much."

"You remember that Halloween she caught you lying to her?"

"Oh ... that."

"That. Plus, now I know she's Sarah Bellum? The Science Rogues are not people I want ticked off with me."

"Mom said they never hurt anyone."

"Right, but you heard some of the stuff they pulled. You want those kind of pranks happening to _you_?"

"Oh." Kim considered the possibility. "Okay, so mom and dad are a challenge. We can count Junior and Bonnie out, right? Unless Senior bribes their way to victory."

"I doubt even he has that kind of cash. They'll score a lot higher than they ought to, but the organizers must make a mint off this competition. The DVD sales alone ..."

"There are _DVDs_?"

"Available on Evil-Bay. Anyway, the point is, they'll let Junior buy into the game, but I doubt they'll let him buy the win. It'd end up costing them money in the long term."

"Fine. You already said Sheela and Manx were lightweights compared to us ... what about Jones and Leon?"

"A lot depends on the type of mission they get. Leon's abilities make her a real wildcard." Having finished with Kim's neck, the green woman moved her hands down.

"Shego! What are you doing?"

"Relax, Princess. I'm just moving the straps so I can get at your shoulders. You're still decent. Just remember not to sit up too fast."

"You should have asked first." Kim grumbled. Shego sighed and shook her head.

"Don't worry, I won't try any naughty lesbian touching." She couldn't stop herself from adding. "Though if you tried it you might like it."

Kim gave a snort.

"Please. I got that line a hundred times while I was in Paris."

Shego smirked as she pressed her hands slowly up the redhead's back.

"Ever do anything about it?"

"..." A red flush spread over Kim's shoulders. Shego gaped.

"Damn, Kimmie. Is there any part of you that _doesn't_ blush? And don't think you can get away with not answering my question. You can't leave me hanging like that." The dark-haired woman said as her fingers founded a particularly hard nut of muscle in Kim's shoulder. "Wow, you're tense. Let me try a little heat on this."

"You brought a heat pack?"

"Doy. I've got one built in." Shego summoned the merest thread of her plasma power, letting the warmth seep from her fingers into the redhead's back.

"You're using _plasma_ to massage me?" Kim's tone was shocked, but then her shoulders visibly relaxed. "... that actually feels really good." _It really does, but I can't let myself forget this is Shego. She's acting nice now, but only because she wants something from me. Gotta remember: we're not friends._

Shego smirked

"That's what all the girls tell me."

"I didn't know you could do that." Kim ignored the suggestive remark.

"I've got perfect control over my powers, Princess. Didn't you ever wonder why I could melt steel and yet never fry your face off?"

"Mainly I thought it was because you've got lousy aim – _ow_!" Kim broke off as Shego pinched her thigh. "Bitch."

"So, gonna tell me about your secret lezzie past, Cupcake?"

"Nothing really to tell. A lesbian girl in one of my classes always teased me that I'd like it if I tried it. She went on about it all semester, until finally one night I got tired of it, leaned over and planted one on her."

"That doesn't sound like you."

"I ... I'd had a bad couple of days. I wasn't thinking straight."

"No pun intended." Shego smirked as a wicked idea occurred to her. As nonchalantly as she could, she continued. "So who was the better kisser: me or her?"

"Oh, definitely her. She stuck her tongue in my mouth, and it became the hottest, most exciting kiss I've ever had. Soon we were so turned on we were groping each other right there in the café. After they threw us out we went back to her place and had the best, wildest sex ever. I've never looked twice at a man since."

Shego gaped, dumbstruck. Then a series of suppressed tremors in Kim's shoulders made her suspicions flare.

"You're teasing me!" the green woman accused.

"As you would say: 'Doy'." Kim half gloated, half giggled. "She was so surprised she didn't even react. Then her girlfriend came back from the restroom and told me to keep my hands off her property."

"Her _property_?"

"The Sophies were a bit odd. They would have loved one of those French maid outfits you're always talking about."

"The Sophies?"

"Yeah, Sophie D and Sophie S. I'm not sure why everyone called them that. It wasn't their initials."

Shego snorted, choking back her own laughter.

"I can't imagine." She squeezed the words out as nonchalantly as she could, then snapped the straps from the redhead's costume back into place.

"Ow!"

* * *

"How did you talk me into this?" Kim asked a few minutes later, as she straddled Shego's back and kneaded her thumbs against the green woman's neck.

"I whined."

"Right." Kim shuddered at the memory. "I had no idea your voice could go that high."

"Hey, I don't have the bone structure to pull off a good pout. I have to rely on other forms of motivation. And since I need you for the tournament, beating you until you agreed wasn't really an option."

"Like you'd be able to beat me, anyway." Kim scoffed.

Shego snickered, causing Kim's eyes to narrow dangerously as the redhead dug her nails into the green woman's skin.

"Ow! Jeez, Princess, what the hell?" Shego yelped, then replayed the conversation in her mind. "Relax, I wasn't laughing at your comment, though I should. I was just wondering how much a tabloid would pay for a photo of us right now."

Kim had a sudden moment of panic.

"This won't be on the DVDs, will it?"

Shego snorted.

"You only just thought of that _now_?"

"Answer the question." Kim poked the green woman in the small of the back.

"No, it won't." Shego assured the redhead. "It's like the Olympics: they only film the opening and closing ceremonies, and the actual events. The rest of the time, we're left alone."

"You're sure?"

"Would you tick off the best thieves in the world?"

"I already have." Kim pointed out. "Unless they all secretly like jail."

"OK, would anyone _sane_ tick off the best thieves in the world?"

"Hey!" Kim glared at the back of Shego's head.

"Just paying you back for earlier."

"Well if we're doing paybacks ..." Kim unhooked the back of Shego's bikini top.

"What the-!?"

"Relax. I'm just moving the strap so I can get at your back. You're still decent. Just remember not to sit up too fast." Kim smugly paraphrased the green woman's own words back at her. "Don't worry, I won't try any naughty lesbian touching."

"I'm glad to hear it, Kimmie-cub." A warm contralto voice interrupted the banter. "Your father and I don't mind if you're a lesbian, but we've always frowned on getting too blatant with the PDAs."

Kim's body froze. Her mind froze too. Then it shattered into a thousand pieces and ran screaming in every direction it could. Shego twisted her head to look back over her shoulder, and smirked as she squinted into the bright sun.

"Sorry, Sarah. I think Kimmie's having a little trouble remembering how to talk, at the moment. Maybe even how to breathe."

"That's okay, Shego. I can see she's a little distracted right now." Kim's mother stepped to the side so that Shego wouldn't be staring into the sun to look at her. The green woman appreciated the consideration. _And the view. If Kimmie looks half that good in twenty years ... _She forced herself not to finish that thought. _Keep your mind on the tournament, Shego. Crushing on straight girls is __**always **__a boneheaded move_.

"I was kidding!" Kim's mind and mouth finally restored their connection.

"I know, honey." Mrs Possible reached out and tousled her daughter's hair, earning a half-hearted squeak of outrage from the younger redhead. "You're not in any trouble for that. Though after we get home your father and I will be having a serious talk with you about sneaking off to secret international thieving tournaments without our permission."

"Aw Mom! I already told you why I came here." Kim whined. She paused, suddenly thinking of something. "Mom ... if the Science Rogues are retired, why did you guys come to this thing?"

"It's a long story, Kimmie-cub. We'll tell you the whole thing when we get home." Her mother answered vaguely. She brightened as her attention was drawn by movement further down the beach. "Oh, there's your father. Excuse me, girls, I have a date with an extra-large bottle of suntan lotion."

"Man, this sitch is already ferociously strange, and now mom just totally ducked my question." Kim lamented, poking Shego in the back to emphasize her point. The green woman merely grunted, her attention elsewhere. Kim followed her gaze. "Shego? Please tell me you're not checking out my mom."

"Okay. I am not checking out your mom." Shego intoned solemnly. "I do have a question though."

"What?" As soon as the word popped out, Kim knew she would regret it.

"Do you think she's swaying her hips like that for your father, or because she knows I'm watching?"

"... have I mentioned I hate you?"

"Not in the last ten minutes, so you're about due."

* * *

**Author's Note:** The last chapter's kids' book reference was _The Borribles_, as Angus MacSpon deduced. What's not to love about a book where street kids assassinate the Wombles?

Revelations from Kim, and the suggestion of secrets being held by the Doctors Possible. What could that mean? Or was everyone too distracted by the scenes of scantily-clad women massaging each other to care about the plot? :)


	6. Volleyball

Kim and Shego's latest squabble was short-circuited by an unwelcome interruption: Bonnie Rockwaller, clad in the kind of swimwear they write novelty songs about, with a volleyball tucked under one arm

Kim and Shego's latest squabble was short-circuited by an unwelcome interruption: Bonnie Rockwaller, clad in the kind of swimwear they write novelty songs about, with a volleyball tucked under one arm.

"I want to set up the volleyball net. Can you two dykes take a break from publicly groping each other and move your crap outta the way?" Bonnie shuddered theatrically. "God, Possible ... now I know you're a lesbo my skin crawls whenever I think about you ogling me when I was showering, or changing after practice!"

Kim, still kneeling over Shego, very deliberately ran her eyes up and down her former high school rival.

"Trust me, Bonbon. Lesbo or not –" _So not!_ "- I _never_ had the slightest interest in ogling _you_."

Shego twisted to look up at the third woman, giving her an appreciative leer.

"I don't know, Kimmie. From what I see, you oughta rethink that – hey!" She broke off with a yelp as Kim swatted her bikini-clad butt. "What the hell, Pumpkin?"

"Stop checking out Bonnie. Your eyes have done quite enough wandering for one morning."

"It's not _my_ fault your mom's a MIL-"

"Shego!" Kim slapped her hand over the pale woman's mouth.

Bonnie paled.

"Oh gross! You two are perverts!"

The tanned brunette stormed off, leaving a red-faced Kim to glare at her green-skinned companion. Shego glared back, then the angry look in her eyes suddenly turned mischievous.

"Nyah!" Kim let go of the green woman's mouth. "Did you just _lick_ my hand?"

"Made you let go, didn't it?" Shego smirked. "Just relax, Kimmie. And try not to think of where else my tongue has been."

"Trust me, I've been trying not to think of _that_ ever since you stuck it in my _mouth_ last night. My poor middle class sensibilities may never recover." Kim placed the back of her hand against her forehead and mockingly pretended to swoon. Despite herself, Shego chuckled.

"The lesbian taunting really _doesn't_ work on you, does it? At least when it's not about your mom."

"You checking out my mom doesn't freak me because you're both women. It freaks me because she's my mother." Kim huffed. "My very happily _married_ mother."

"No need to worry, Kimmie. I only plan to look, not touch." Shego waved a hand easily. Then her attention returned to her original point. "But even six months ago that line about my tongue would have sent you running to disinfect your hand. So what changed?"

Kim sighed.

"If I answer that, will you tell me what you've been doing since we fought the Lorwardians?"

Shego frowned.

"... Kimmie, you know I have to give an honest answer to any questions you ask me, right? I mean, that _was_ one of your conditions for this whole deal."

"Yeah, I know. But I ... I don't think that gives me the right to just ask you anything I want." Kim shrugged. "I needed to know I could trust you when it mattered. That's why I asked for that condition. Not so I could pry in your private life."

"That's noble of you."

"Ha ha."

"No, really. I mean it. It's dumb as rocks, but it is noble. If _you_ had to tell _me_ the truth, I'd ask you all sorts of embarrassing things."

Kim laughed.

"Well, I _am_ a hero. So, do we have a deal? You tell your story if I tell you mine?"

"You sure you want to know what I've been up to, Pumpkin?" Shego drawled, with a feline smile. "You may be disappointed in what you find out."

"I'll take that chance." Kim colored slightly, "I've been dying to ask you, actually."

"Really?" Shego raised a shapely eyebrow. "Why the interest? It can't just be my winsome personality."

"After the Lorwardians were driven off and you and Drakken got your pardons ... you just _vanished_. Dropped out of sight. Not even Wade could find you –"

Shego snorted.

"Sounds like your misgivings about prying in my personal life weren't such a big deal back then."

"... yeah. Sorry." Kim shrugged, looking a little embarrassed. "But things were a mess after the invasion. It was a perfect opportunity for causing trouble, and there were villains coming out of the woodwork ... I had back-to-back missions for three weeks straight. When you disappeared, it set off a lot of alarm bells. Especially when we couldn't find you, again. Global Justice had 'round the clock surveillance on Drakken for _months_, in case you turned up with him. Maybe they still do."

"How _is_ Dr D?"

Kim shrugged.

"Last I heard he was still reformed, living in Boston and working for a research company. After a couple of months I figured that as long as he's not trying to take over the world ... or Canada ... his life isn't really any of my business. I figured the same about you, until you showed up at my parents' house."

"Huh. I'm kinda disappointed I was that easy to forget."

Kim rolled her eyes.

"Ego much? Anyway, I wouldn't say I _forgot_ you. You've given me too many bruises for that. I just figured that if you weren't causing hits on my site, I should stay out of your life. And speaking of your life ..."

"Nuh uh. You first, remember?"

"Oh, right." Kim folded her hands in her lap, looking a little unsure of herself. Shego had to fight a sudden urge to give the younger woman a hug. _Where the hell did __**that**__ come from?_

"Today would be nice, Kimmie." The green woman covered her earlier impulse with sarcasm.

"Well, you know I went to school in Paris? The only person I really knew there before I arrived was Francois Dumas -"

"The _stylist_?"

"You've heard of him?"

"Of _course_ I've heard of him." Shego waved off the question. "Do you know him well? Can you get me an appointment?"

"You want an appointment?"

"Do you have any _idea_ how hard it is to get style tips for my complexion?"

"Well, after we get out of here, I'll see if he can make some time for you." The redhead looked nonplussed by the turn of the conversation. "Uh ... where was I?"

"You were explaining how you've been holding out on me about actually having friends who aren't buffoo –" Shego paused. "Who aren't Ron."

"Good save." Kim noted dryly. "So I was scheduled to arrive a week before school was started, and Francois said he'd show me around town, and introduce me to his niece, Dominique, who was going to the same university as me."

"So far, so happy families. So what?"

"You know Francois is a bit ..."

"Gay?"

"Flamboyant." Kim said, firmly. "I've met his wife. She's lovely. Anyway, Dominique was kinda the opposite. Very straight-seeming on the surface –"

"But a raging dyke underneath it all."

Kim frowned.

"Who's telling this story? And that's kind of a mean-spirited way of putting it –"

"As a raging dyke myself, I disagree."

"TMI, Shego. Also: stop interrupting. That's a new rule."

"You and your rules." The green woman rolled her eyes.

"Whatever. So Dominique was really into other girls. And all her friends were really into girls, as well. Her female friends, anyway. So basically, I hung out with Dominique for a week, and by the time I started school, I knew practically every lesbian in the place. And you know what people are like. They see a girl who does martial arts and rarely wears dresses and hangs around with outspoken lesbians –"

"And they somehow get the impression you're a lesbian, too? I wonder why." Shego smirked. "And I gotta admit, Kimmie, you _did _ping my gaydar the first time we met."

"What, really?"

"Nah, I'm just screwin' with ya."

"Hate you." Despite her words, the redhead smiled.

"Hate you, too. So you hung out with lesbians, and everyone else thought you were a lesbian. That's it?"

"Pretty much. I spent four months getting propositioned by other girls, being told far more than I needed to know about their sex lives, and hearing the kind of dumb things bigots will say when they think you're gay and don't realize you know eleven forms of martial arts. I've got pretty thick-skinned about that stuff. The End."

"Huh. That story sucked. I want my money back."

"Shut up and stalk talking."

Shego just looked at the redhead, who slowly colored.

"Okay, fine. I realize that you can't do both." Kim admitted. "I meant 'stop critiquing my story and tell me yours'."

"Actually, Pumpkin, I'm glad your story was so plain, because like I said – I think you're going to be disappointed with mine."

"After the build up you've given it?"

"Smart ass. So, you already know I dropped out of sight after the UN got done handing out pardons. And you set Nerdlinger to look for me. How many of my alter egos did he find? Six? Eight?"

"Eleven."

"Not bad. Boy's got some skills. But I've been setting up and hiding fake identities for myself for years. I've got dozens of them. Had dozens, anyway. A lot of them had unfortunate accidents over the last six months. The eventual beneficiary of all those estates was Anne Shirley, a freelance travel writer who recently bought a nice house in the suburbs of Montreal."

"Anne Shirley? Not Sheila Go, or something like that?"

"The idea was _not_ to be found, remember." Shego snorted. "Anyway, Anne's only a temporary identity. And I certainly can't keep her now I've told you about her. I might have given up crime, but I don't want GJ keeping tabs on me."

Kim frowned.

"Wait a second. 'Given up' crime? Past tense?"

"Uh ..." Shego could have slapped herself in the forehead. _Nice going, you green goof_. "I said 'giving up'."

"No you didn't." Kim shot her a hard look. "You said 'have given up'. Saying 'have giving up' wouldn't make sense."

"Look, it's not that big a deal, okay?" Shego sighed. "It's not like I had an epiphany and decided that my lifestyle was wrong and I had to make everything right in the world. I just realized that I'd never have a better chance to retire and enjoy my ill-gotten gains. How many times in my life was I going to be offered a full pardon for all past crimes? It was an opportunity so good, even Drakken could see it."

"But if you already gave up crime ... why did you let me make you do that cheer routine?"

Shego sighed.

"If I'd told you then that I wasn't a criminal any more – at the very time I was inviting you to a competition to crown the King of Thieves – you would have passed out from laughter."

"Fair point." Kim acknowledged. "It's pretty hard to believe, even now."

"Yeah, well it _is_ true. Can you think of any other reason why you didn't get a single hit about me on your site in six months?"

"Actually, I did get a few hits ... but they were all imposters." Kim hastened to add, when she saw Shego's face darken. "None of them gave me anywhere near as much trouble as the real thing."

Despite herself, Shego grinned at the comment.

"Well, I hope you kicked their copycat asses. There's only _one_ Shego."

"Thankfully."

"Screw you, Possible."

"Not without flowers and dinner first, you won't."

* * *

Five minutes later, Bonnie Rockwaller stomped her way back across the beach. She was trailed by one of the competition staff, who was struggling under the weight of the volleyball set.

"Gawd, are you two perverts still in the way? The least you could do is move, after I've done all the work bringing the net down here!"

"Yeah." Shego shot a glance at the sweating staff member. "I can see how hard _you've_ been working."

"Are you moving or not?" Bonnie huffed.

Kim sighed.

"We'll move –"

"- as long as we get the first game." Shego interrupted.

"What?" Bonnie glared. "_I_ get the first game."

"Calm down, drama queen. You need two players on each side anyway. All three of us can play."

"Wait a second." The tanned brunette raised a hand. "No way am I playing against you lesbo freaks. You'll be slapping each others asses and doing that stupid boob-bump thing all the time. I don't need to see that."

Shego snorted.

"You know, for such a 'phobe, you sure seem to spend a lot of time thinking about what lesbians do."

Bonnie Rockwaller. Speechless. That didn't happen very often. Kim couldn't help but giggle. _I wish I had a camera_.

Bonnie heard the giggle and shot Kim a glare.

"Yuck it up, Possible. The whole of Middleton is going to know about your perverted little relationship."

Shego's eyes narrowed as plasma crackled around her fingers.

"Like hell they will!"

"Shego, relax. It's no big." Kim gently touched the green woman's forearm. She smiled at the disbelieving look the older woman gave her. "Really. Think about what I told you earlier. Besides, if I can deal with all the fake nudes of me that people post on the internet, I think I can deal with this."

"I still say you should let me beat this bitch."

"That'd be assault. You're giving up your life of crime, remember?" There was the very faintest hint of a pout.

Shego sighed.

"I hate you."

"Hate you, too."

"Ugh." Bonnie folded her arms. "Get a room."

Shego growled softly, causing the tanned woman to take a half-step back. The green woman huffed and rose to her feet.

"Fine. I'm going to go find a partner for the game. Kimmie, you get bitchy boots here on your team."

"Why me?" The redhead mock-pouted. Fortunately, the pretend expression didn't have the impact of a real one.

"Because if I was on the same side of the net as her it'd be much harder to aim the ball at that nose she kicks sticking in our business."

Bonnie squeaked, hands instinctively flying to cover her face. Kim merely gave the green woman a stern look.

"_Shego_."

"Fine!" The pale woman spread her hands. "No more tormenting the closet case. You guys set up the net while I find a partner."

* * *

"You asked my mom?" Kim hissed.

"Hey, I'm going up against a Possible. Only fair I have one of my own." Shego looked smug, then leered a little. "Besides, every time I serve, she's going to be bending over in front of – ow!" The green woman gave the redhead a glare. "You know, Pumpkin, if you keep smacking me on the butt like that, I'm going to put you over my knee and see how much _you_ like it."

"Not as much as you, I'm thinking."

Despite herself, Shego chuckled.

"You're probably right. So ... want to make this game a little more interesting?"

"As long as whatever you've got in mind doesn't involve spanking."

"Nice idea, but not what I had in mind. How 'bout this: if my team wins the game, you have to sleep in the bed for the rest of the tournament."

"Why do you care where I sleep?"

"I don't. But _you_ do, so this is just one of the few ways I can still mess with you."

Kim laughed.

"Okay, you're on. But _when_ my team wins, you have to sleep on the couch for the rest of the tournament."

"Done." They shook on it.

* * *

A coin toss gave Shego's team the first serve, and the green woman took the ball herself. She swept her arm up, and struck, and the ball _zoomed_ over the net, crashing down between Kim and Bonnie before either had a chance to react.

"Holy sh-" Kim realized her mother was present and clamped her mouth shut. "Wow."

"One-nil!" Shego called, a smug grin on her face. A little _too_ smug. Kim's eyes narrowed. The green woman was up to something.

So when Shego made her second serve, the redhead's eyes were firmly locked on the pale woman's hand. There was a tiny flash of green just as Shego's hand struck the ball.

"Foul!" yelled Kim, interrupting Shego's celebration of her second ace.

"What are you talking about, Pumpkin?" The older woman did her best to look offended. "That serve was perfect."

"That serve was _plasma-powered_." The redhead rebutted. "Plasma powers are cheating. That means they're a foul."

"There's nothing in the beach volleyball rules about not using plasma powers." Shego objected, folding her arms. Kim, not in the mood for arguments, simply looked over at Mrs Dr Possible.

"Mom?"

"No plasma powers, Shego."

The green woman sighed.

"Yes, Sarah."

"And the scores are back at nil-all."

"... yes, Sarah." The green woman's reluctance was palpable. Kim snickered, drawing a baleful glance from Shego.

"I'm glad you find something so amusing, Pumpkin. We'll see if you're still laughing come bedtime."

"Trust me, Shego. Seeing you on the couch will have me in stitches."

Unfortunately for Kim, her bravado was not born out by the events of the next fifteen minutes. Her mom and Shego raced to a 12-7 lead. While Kim and the green woman were evenly matched, their partners were not. It wasn't that Mrs Possible was that good a player. She was more athletic than Kim expected – _I guess all those step classes do pay off_ – and had a good eye for the ball, but she had no real idea of the tactics of the game. Plus, she didn't seem to be taking it very seriously. She giggled whenever she flubbed a move, even if it meant she'd landed face first in the sand. Kim wasn't sure what to make of her mother's giggling. It was disturbing, somehow.

So the difference between the two teams wasn't Anne Possible. It was Bonnie Rockwaller. The brunette was in great shape – and she still filled out a bikini in a way that Kim couldn't help but envy – but it wasn't her athleticism that was the problem. It was the way she tentatively 'dabbed' at the ball all the time. It wasn't such a problem on defense: Bonnie could get to the ball and keep it alive just fine. It was on offense that it became a nightmare. The brunette's tentative jabs at the ball usually sent it on slow, looping arcs that Shego mercilessly smashed out of the sky. Which meant that Kim was really the only one who could score points for her team. Having only one option for attack was really hurting their score.

To make matters worse, the game had drawn a crowd. The other competitors and tournament staff alike milled on the sidelines, cheering for one team or the other. Even Mr Possible was there, wearing garishly colored swimming trunks and unashamedly barracking for his wife rather than his daughter. Kim shot him a wounded look for that, and he shrugged.

"Sorry, Kimmie-cub, but your mother's on my team for the tournament. I have to keep on her good side."

Finally, Kim lost patience with Bonnie's behavior.

"You've got to _hit_ the ball, Bonbon!" she snapped, exasperated. "What are you afraid of? Breaking a nail?"

"Well, duh." Bonnie displayed her perfect fingers. "This is a four hundred dollar manicure, Kim. _You_ may not have to worry about your looks any more, now you've gone all lezzie, but some of us still have standards to maintain."

"You have to be kidding!" Kim slapped a hand over her face. "Why would you start the game if you're afraid to hit the ball properly?"

Bonnie didn't answer, but her gaze shot over to Senor Senior Junior, who was lounging on one of the recliners with a complicated-looking cocktail in his hand. Kim followed the look, and groaned.

"You're doing this to please _Junior_? He's the only person _not_ watching!"

"Oh please." Bonnie folded her arms. "Like my motivations are any different from the rest of you."

"What?"

"Come off it, Kim. Your mom's totally out here to please your dad. Look at the way she giggles every time she misses the ball, or hugs him every time she scores a point."

"But –"

Bonnie ignored the attempted interruption.

"And don't even get me started about you and your freaky green girlfriend. The two of you have spent this entire game showing off for each other."

"I have not –"

"That dive you did on the last point? The one where you nearly knocked over Falsetto Jones? Tell me you didn't do that for _her_ benefit."

"Uh." Kim was tongue-tied. She couldn't exactly protest that she was trying to show _up_ Shego, not show _off_ for her. Bonnie would just give her grief for being in denial. "Fine, whatever. It's all just lesbian foreplay. Can we at least try to win the game?"

Bonnie did seem to make a bit more of an effort, but soon the score stood at 14-11, with Shego serving for the match. Kim sighed. _Well, at least the score-line isn't a total humiliation, even if everything that comes after it will be_.

"I am sorry to interrupt, ladies." Senor Senior Senior stepped out of the crowd. "But it is my duty to inform Ms Shego and Ms Possible that it is time for their mission to begin."

Kim beamed. _Yes! Saved by the ... well, saved by the supervillain_.

"Aw, come on, Triple-S." Shego put her hands on her hips. "I've got Kimmie beat –"

"Only in your dreams, Shego!"

Senior shrugged his shoulders at Shego's objection.

"I am sorry, Ms Shego, but rules are rules. You must leave immediately if you wish to remain in the competition."

"Just one more point."

"Immediately." Senior was steadfast. "Unless your game of volleyball is more important than this tournament."

"_**Arrrgh!**_" Shego bellowed in frustration, spearing a glowing first _through_ the volleyball, which deflated with a sad little hissing sound. "Fine. C'mon Pumpkin. Let's go find out what we have to steal."

* * *

**Author's Notes:** Looks like Kim and Shego are the first to be sent on their tournament mission. Maybe that means the next chapter will actually feature something other than bikini-clad women. I'm sure you were all tired of that, anyway :)

Because I am a dork, I am hugely amused by the kids' book reference in this chapter.


	7. The Tournament

Kim wiped her palms on her pants.

Shego, sprawled lazily with her feet on the table, opened one eye and peered at the redhead from between her boots.

"That's the third time you've done that, Pumpkin. What's the si ... problem?"

Kim colored slightly and muttered something, not looking up as she did so. Shego raised an eyebrow.

"Didn't quite catch that, Princess?"

Kim sighed and raised here head.

"I said, 'we're going to have to steal something'."

"Yes." Shego dropped her boots off the table and leaned forward. "Kinda goes with the whole 'King of the Thieves' deal, Kimmie."

"Yeah. I just ... I didn't really think about it, until now." Kim's flush darkened as she caught the amused curl in Shego's lip. "Yes, I already realize how dumb that is. No need to tell me. I just ... the only time I ever stole anything was when you and Drakken tricked me into it. I'm not sure I can go through with this."

"Pumpkin, Pumpkin, Pumpkin." Shego shook her head, still grinning. "Do you think I want to win this tournament?"

"... yes?"

"Exactly. So trust me. Unlike you, I _did_ think about this." Shego couldn't stop a smug grin from forming. Then again, she didn't try that hard. "I wouldn't have asked you to be my partner if I thought you couldn't do it."

"What if we have to steal something dangerous?" Kim objected, "I can't help a bunch of criminals get their hands on a weapon –".

"Rest assured, Ms Possible, that you will not be asked to do so." Senor Senior Senior stepped into the room.

"It's about damn time you showed up." Shego grumbled. "First everything was so damn urgent we couldn't finish the volleyball match, then after we put on our mission gear and rush here like you wanted, you keep us waiting. I could have kicked Cupcake's butt a dozen times by now."

"You _wish_."

"My apologies for the delay, Ms Shego." Senor Senior said mildly, "I was simply ensuring that everything was in order for your mission. As for your concerns, Ms Possible, as your partner -" He was far too well-mannered to emphasize the word, even though Kim blushed just to hear it. "- was no doubt about to inform you, the theft of weapons has been banned from the tournament ever since the unfortunate events of the 1917 competition."

"Oh." Kim looked relieved, then curious. "What happened in 1917?"

Shego snorted.

"The organizers learned that even thieves can be idiots ... or patriots, depending on your point of view." The green woman turned her attention to Senor Senior. "So, Triple-S: what is it we have to do?"

"For now, you must simply accompany me to the dock. A sea plane will take you to the location of your test. Once you arrive at your destination, you will be given your final instructions."

"More hurry up and wait." Shego rolled her eyes. "I'm so glad we rushed over here when you asked."

"I am afraid that we must all follow the rules, Ms Shego."

"Right. The way we were called here has _nothing_ to do with trying to piss me off." Shego glowered at Senior, then switched her attention to Kim. "I was _so_ gonna win that volleyball match."

"So not!"

* * *

The sea plane's engines cut out with one last grumbling cough.

"You can remove the hoods now." The pilot called back.

"Finally." Shego grumbled, tearing the thick black fabric from off her head. "Who was the last person you had in this thing? Body Odor Man?"

"Mine wasn't that bad." Kim said, though her wrinkled her nose suggested it hadn't been all that good, either. "We can trade on the way back if you like."

The green woman looked suspiciously at the wadded up black fabric in the redhead's hand.

"No. I think I'll stick to the horror I know. I don't see why we have to wear these stupid hoods anyway. We're the world's best thieves. If we want to find out there the island is, we will."

The pilot shrugged.

"I don't make the rules. Anyway, now we've arrived, here's the deal. We're at the island of Pikkapukkapunya –" he caught the looks both women gave him. "Hey. _I_ didn't name it. Anyway, the island's uninhabited, but there used to be some natives here, so you may see some old buildings around the place. Ignore them: there's nothing there. What you want to head for is that big mountain there."

"Mountain? I think you mean the _volcano_." Shego said flatly.

"Don't worry. It's dormant."

"It's smoking!" Kim protested.

"Well, maybe not _entirely_ dormant. But not really active, either. Anyway, that's the reason the island's been evacuated. It's also where you need to go. There's a secret complex underneath it. I can't tell you where, that's your problem. Somewhere in that complex there's a ruby, big as my fist." The pilot looked at his own huge hands, and shrugged. "Well, big as one of your fists anyway. Bring the ruby back here to complete your mission. Any questions?"

"Any time limit?" Shego asked.

"You have four hours to actually complete the mission, but I'll stay out here until you get back to the plane or you're both dead." The man said, matter-of-factly. "We'll have three hover-cameras tracking you, so I'll know if you buy it."

The green woman nodded.

"How's our performance being judged?"

"Skill and style. There is a bonus for speed, so the faster you come back with the rock, the better, but the main thing is not to come back without it, and not to take more than four hours. Do either of those, and you're considered to have failed your task. No chance of winning if that happens."

"We'll be back in time." Shego said confidently. "Any info on what security's in the volcano complex?"

The pilot simply shrugged.

"They didn't tell me anything. That all?"

Kim spoke up.

"When does the four hours start?"

"Soon as you leave the plane."

"Right." Kim dug into her backpack and produced a skateboard. She shot Shego a grin and raised her eyebrows. "You ready?"

"So the plan is 'skate or drown'?"

"Not quite." Kim swung open the sea plane's door and dropped down onto the float, then tossed the skateboard into the rolling swell. The board landed with a splash, sank for a second under its own momentum, then bobbed back to the surface due to buoyancy.

"Great. The world's smallest surfbo-" Shego trailed off as the board suddenly shuddered and then _grew_, lengthening and widening until it was some eight feet long and two feet wide.

"Wade's the man." Kim said happily, hopping down onto the board. Her boots clicked into place with a pronounced _thunk_. "Electromagnetic field holds my feet in place. Also powers the motor."

"Motor?"

"Rocket-powered skateboard or motorized surfboard. It's multifunctional." Kim caught Shego's look. "Look, Wade's a big 'Transmuters' fan. Even the Kimmunicator can grow wheels and zoom around. You just get used to it. Now: time's wasting. You getting on the board or not."

"Fine." Shego leapt down. Despite the lightness of her landing, her feet immediately slipped on the wet surface. She gave a yelp of alarm as one boot slid all the way into the ocean, and grabbed Kim to stop herself from falling. "Geez, Kimmie!"

"Sorry. Forgot that the field only works if you have metal implants in your boots." Kim's voice sounded ... strained.

"You okay, Princess?"

"... could you maybe move your hands down?"

Suddenly realizing exactly _where_ she'd grab Kim, the green woman felt her own skin burn with embarrassment. _They're not big, but they sure are perky_.

Muttering something that might, if you were in a generous mood, be taken for apology, the pale woman slid her hands down and laced them around Kim's stomach.

"Tighter." Kim ordered, with a light touch to the back of Shego's hands.

"What?" Shego blinked.

"You have to hold me tighter." The redhead repeated. "Otherwise you'll throw off my balance."

"Right." Shego stepped closer to the other woman, until the sides of her own boots touched Kim's, and the rest of her body was pressed against the redhead's back, except where Kim's pack came between them. "You know, Princess ... " she whispered, her lips not far from Kim's ear. "First you grab me while we're in bed and now you practically _order_ me to grope you. It's pretty clear you want me."

"Hush and hold on." Kim snapped, and triggered the board's motor. A flush of red on the younger woman's shoulders told Shego that her latest barb had got through Kim's defenses. _Good to know a few things still can. Now I just need to stop thinking about how good she smells._

* * *

"Well, that certainly beat swimming." Shego admitted as the surfboard glided to a halt on the shoreline. "Now how do we get to the volcano? It looks like pretty solid jungle from here to there. Could take hours."

"I gave you a set of my mission gear for a reason, Shego." Kim slapped the pack the taller woman was wearing. "Assuming it still works after you vandalized it."

"I think you'll find that what I did was _decoration_." Shego was rather proud of the mottled green and black paint-job she'd done.

"Well, assuming your 'decoration' hasn't clogged the vents, you should be able to press here, and adjust the dial here. And –" Wings suddenly snapped out of the pack, and there was a soft whine of turbines spinning up to speed. "- instant jet pack!"

"And the reason we didn't just fly straight from the plane to the volcano is?"

"... I wanted to try out the surfboard."

"Wonderful. This isn't a time for games, Princess. I want to win."

"Sorry." Kim didn't _look_ sorry. Shego decided to ignore that fact.

"This jet pack use standard controls?" The green woman asked.

"Yeah, though you might find the controls a little under-responsive. It's Ron's old pack, and he didn't have the steadiest hands, so Wade reduced the sensitivity. I didn't have time to get it recalibrated."

"Did you at least get it fumigated?"

"Shego."

"Hey, you never said I couldn't insult Ron. Just that I had to call him by his name."

"You're evil."

"Flattery will get you everywhere." The green woman gave Kim a salacious wink.

Kim merely rolled her eyes, and then the two women soared up from the beach, rising high above the dense canopy of the jungle. The redhead spun lazily in a circle, then pointed off to their left.

"There's one of those abandoned villages."

Shego shrugged.

"The ruby's not there, Kimmie. Let's get to the mountain."

"Volcano."

"I'm pretending I don't know that."

The flight to the foot of the volcano was uneventful, the jet packs carrying both women easily over the tree tops, the branches whipping past beneath them.

Shego barrel-rolled smoothly to dodge a flight of startled parrots, then smirked as she saw lithe, brown forms jumping from branch to branch below.

"Hey, monkeys." She was surprised when the comment caused a giggle from her companion. "What's so funny?"

"Just not used to hearing 'the m-word' without a healthy dose of panic attached to it."

"The 'm-word'? Monkeys?"

"Ron has issues."

"I'll say."

They landed a few minutes later. The entrance to the caves wasn't hard to find. Forty foot stone doors don't rely on going unnoticed for security. Above the doors was a hideous stone face, some fifteen feet high. It had toad-like features, all squashed in and misshapen, with a thin-lipped, slobbering mouth filled with needle-sharp teeth.

"What the _heck_ is that supposed to be?" Kim asked.

"Looks a bit like a 'Spiderwick' goblin." Shego offered.

"Aren't you a bit old for those books, Shego?"

"I like the pictures." The green woman shrugged. "Whatever it is, I think we can assume it's a warning. 'Stay out or get eaten'."

"Eaten by what?"

"Traps, maybe. We won't know until we get inside. I could blast through the doors."

Kim shook her head.

"In the movies, that pretty much always leads to a cave-in."

"This isn't the movies."

"A cave-in would still be bad." Kim pointed out. "I think we should look for a more subtle way inside."

Shego walked up to the stone surface and peered at it closely. Something tickled at the back of her mind. She ignited her left hand.

"Hey!" Kim exclaimed. "Cave-ins, remember."

"Relax, Pumpkin. I'm not going to blast anything. I just need some light." Shego brought her hand closer to the seam at the edge of the doors. Finally, she nodded. "Fake."

"What?"

"The doors." The green woman shut off her plasma. "They're fake. The seams go in about a foot, but then there's solid stone. Someone cut these grooves to make it _look_ like these were real doors, but they're not."

"So this isn't the way in."

"No." Shego's gaze slid up, to the leering face above the doors. The thing's mouth seemed very deep. _Almost tunnel-like_. "But I think I know where the entrance is."

Kim followed the direction of the green woman's gaze.

"Through the mouth full of sharp teeth?"

"Through the mouth full of sharp teeth."

* * *

"Okay." Kim folded her arms. "In this situation, is saying 'this is too easy' a statement of the obvious, or tempting fate?"

They had navigated the mouthful of teeth without much difficulty, though it had been a little unnerving to squeeze between the barbed teeth and then crawl over the disturbing detailed tongue. At the back of the mouth was a narrow crawlspace. Shego had hurled a glowstick down the opening, and seen it tumble past a jagged opening into a large cavern.

"We'll have to be careful going down, or we'll get sliced up on the rocks, and the drop at the end is a big one, but it's manageable." She'd reported. "We can use your grapple gun to lower ourselves."

"What about the jet packs?"

"Tunnel's too narrow to wear them. We'll have to push them in front of us."

They done just that, eventually dropping down into the cavern Shego had seen. Kim had scooped up the glowstick, shrugging when the green woman pointed out that they had her plasma to light their way.

"I'd feel better with a light one of my own."

Picking their way through the tunnels had taken a good ten minutes or so, the air growing steadily warmer and warmer as they descended. It had all been surprisingly – and a little unsettlingly – easy. There'd been a couple of traps, true, but nothing that really challenged them.

"Even Drakken's traps were better than this."

"Dr D did love his death traps."

At last they'd reached the broad, flag-stoned chamber where they now stood. They'd known it was there well before they arrived; the ruddy glow of magma had seen to that. Streams of molten rock eddied and flowed between the broad flagstones, lending light and sweltering heat to the atmosphere.

At the far end of the chamber stood a massive statue, with the same leering, repulsive face as they'd seen carved above the false 'doors'. The status crouched on one knee, its left hand outstretched, palm-up, on the floor before it. Nestled in the centre of the palm was a fist-sized red gem.

"I think it's a statement of the obvious, _and_ tempting fate." Shego flicked her hair away from her face and partially unzipped her catsuit, giving one of the three hover-cameras a stern look when it focused on her action. "Keep your lens to yourself, buddy." A small burst of plasma didn't actually damage the device, but did send it tumbling through the air. She caught the look Kim was giving her. "What? It's hot in here."

"You need to update your catsuit. They have pleather that breathes, these days, you know."

"And a nice girl like you knows this how?" Shego arched an eyebrow.

"Not the point."

"True. The point is: what's going to happen when we take the gem? Lava monsters? Statue coming to life? The whole place starts collapsing around us?"

"Could be all three ..." Kim trailed off, then sighed. "We're in a volcano."

"Doy." The comment was instinctive, slipping out before Shego consciously grasped Kim's point. "Oh. You think an eruption?"

"If you were a crazy ancient death trap maker, and you had a volcano and a ruby the size of your fist, what would you do?"

"Personally, I'd give up the death traps business, sell the ruby, and buy some better real estate."

"I said 'crazy', remember. Or to put it another way: what would Drakken do?"

"Eruption. Definitely." Shego glanced around. "But he'd need some way for the lava to get to the surface."

"Magma. It isn't lava until it comes out at the other end."

"The geology lesson is very helpful, Princess. My point stands. If the intent is to have us incinerated in fiery, molten death, there needs to be somewhere for the _magma_ to go."

"And you're thinking maybe we can go there first?"

"If the route is wide enough, yes."

"Not a bad idea." Kim allowed. She glanced up at the ceiling, lost in the shadows above them. "Can you toss some plasma up there? Minimum power? I just want light."

Shego did as asked, the flash of green illuminating several dark holes in the ceiling. Kim nodded and ignited her jet pack, soaring up to examine the holes.

"I'm going to see if these lead out." The redhead called down. "Don't touch anything."

Shego rolled her eyes.

"Just hurry up. The faster we do this, the better, remember?"

Kim nodded again and started up through one of the tunnels. It quickly tapered until it was too narrow for her jetpack wings, so she turned back and tried another. This time, the tunnel led to the surface. Kim soared into the air above the volcano, squinting her eyes against the bright sun. _Not a bad way out at all. Couple of tight spots, but nothing Shego can't handle._

The redhead did a slow pirouette, taking a moment to enjoy fresh air after the stuffy caverns below. As she did so, her eye fell on the village she'd spotted earlier.

What she saw there now made her blood run cold.

* * *

"What do you mean, we can't take the gem?" Shego stared at Kim like the redhead had grown a second head.

"There are people in the village, Shego."

"What? No. They said the island was abandoned."

"Well, they were wrong. I saw chimney smoke."

"It could have just been a fire in the jungle ..."

Kim shook her head.

"It wasn't, Shego. There are people on the island. If we take the gem, and the volcano erupts ... they could be killed."

"The village was close to the beach." Shego protested, weakly. "They could escape to sea. None of them would die. We could warn them first!"

"They'd just have their homes and their livelihoods destroyed instead. We can't do this, Shego. You know we can't."

The green woman looked stricken. She raised a hand to her forehead, and Kim was startled to see a glimmer of wetness in the brilliant green eyes.

"This was my _chance_, Kim. My chance to be something more than just a green freak who went bad. If I win this tournament I'll _be_ someone. Someone people will remember."

"Shego." Kim caught the older woman's hand in her own and squeezed it gently. "Six months ago, you saved the world. So what if you don't win this stupid tournament? There wouldn't even _be_ a tournament without you."

Shego sighed, looking unconvinced. But in the end she nodded.

"We can't take the gem."

The journey back to the sea plane was silent. The flight was also silent: the green woman didn't even complain about wearing the hood. Kim made an attempt to start a conversation as they headed back to their room, but Shego made no answer.

The plane flights had been long, and it was late by the time they returned. Silently, they changed for bed: Shego in the bedroom, Kim in the living room. The green woman slid under the sheets of the bed, and reached for the bedside lamp, but as she did so, the redhead padded into the room and climbed into the bed.

Shego rolled back to stare at Kim, still not saying anything, but her gaze clearly asking the question. The younger woman shrugged into her pillow and gave a shy half-smile.

"We both know you were going to win that volleyball match."

The faintest of smiles flickered over Shego's lips.

"Thanks, Pumpkin."

"You're the one who deserves thanks. You did -" the redhead broke off as a green finger touched her lips.

"Not now, Princess. You can tell me in the morning how wonderful I am. Preferably while you're bringing me coffee in bed."

"Okay."

"... and while wearing a maid's outfit."

"Don't push your luck."

"G'night, Pumpkin."

"Night, Shego."

* * *

**Author's Notes: **I originally wrote a completely different second scene for this chapter, but I didn't like it, so it got ditched.

I apologize to any readers who were hoping Kim and Shego's tournament event would be a bit more action-packed, but this isn't really an action-based story. And hopefully, the tender little moment at the end there will lift a few hearts :-)


	8. Nighttime Disturbances

Kim woke slowly, sleep still clouding her thoughts. She had her arms around something warm, and her nose tickling slightly from the sweet-smelling cushion of hair in which it was buried.

"Aw man." She groaned, refusing to open her eyes. "Not again." _How does she keep her hair so soft? I should ask what conditioner she uses._

"Again?" The unexpected voice was amused, though there was an edge of strain. "Should I give up on the idea of grandchildren any time soon?"

"_Mom_?" Kim span so fast she would have fallen off the edge of the bed if it weren't for the older Possible's steadying hand. "This isn't what it looks like!"

"Really? Because it looks to me like someone misses her Pandaroo more than she lets on."

"... okay, it's exactly what it looks like." Kim admitted with one of the all-body blushes that Shego loved to tease her about. "Wait ... what time is it? Is it something about the tournament?"

"It's two in the morning. And yes, it's about the tournament, in a way. But maybe we should have this conversation in the living room, so we don't wake Shego?"

The green woman snorted.

"Shego is already awake." She muttered, not opening her eyes. "And Shego is cranky when she doesn't get her eight hours uninterrupted, Sarah. Please tell me there's someone who needs to be hurt."

"... there may be." Anne sighed and swept her hands through her hair, looking uncertain.

"Really?" At this response, Shego actually rolled over and opened her eyes. For a second, she lay there, mouth half open, simply staring. Then she visibly shook herself. "Okay, I take it back. Clearly I'm still asleep and having one of those utterly inappropriate dreams again."

Belatedly, Kim's sleep-fuzzy mind registered her mother's outfit. Anne Possible was dressed in a pair of scarlet, form-fitting vinyl trousers, split along the side to show an inch-wide strip of exposed flesh, criss-crossed with black laces. Her black, calf-high boots were matched by a bustier of leather and velvet, stitched with scarlet thread.

Sighing, the younger Possible reached back, snatched up her pillow, and slapped it into Shego's face.

"Hey! Save the kinky stuff for later!"

Kim ignored the comment, focusing her attention on her mother. _Something's wrong. Mom's always the calm one, and she's worried. Really worried._

"What's the matter, mom?"

"I just went to your father's room – they've got us in separate rooms –"

"You went to his room at two in the morni -" Kim stopped mid-word, her brain finally catching up with her mouth. _Oh god, oh god, oh god. Mom was going to dad's room – don't think it! Oh god, oh god, oh god_.

"Way to go, Sarah." Shego sat up, spitting out a feather from the pillow, and gave Mrs Dr Possible the thumbs up. "Keep the passion alive."

"Shego. Not now." Anne's tone was firm, and the look she sent the green woman left the former supervillain immediately chastened. "Your dad's missing, Kimmie."

"Missing?" Kim squeaked. "What? How? Why?"

"Is it the competition?" Shego swung her legs and perched on the edge of the bed next to Kim. "They've taken him and you have to get him back before some time limit expires?"

Anne nodded.

"Yes, it's the competition. They grabbed James and left a note. I have until dawn to get him back."

Kim breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well, if it's the tournament it's not so bad, right?" She said. "They won't actually hurt him ..." she trailed off as she saw Anne and Shego exchange a glance.

"The traps in the volcano were real, Kim." Shego reminded the redhead. As she spoke, she unconsciously covered the younger woman's hand with her own. "The lava was real. If they've threatened your father –" she glanced at Anne, who gave a curt nod of confirmation. "- then the threats are real."

"They can't do this!" Kim protested.

"They can and they have." Shego sighed.

"I wish I'd never heard of this competition." The redhead bunched her hands into fists, almost tearing the sheets of the bed. "I'm going to find whoever did this to my dad and I'm –"

"You're not going to do anything, Kimmie." Shego grasped the redhead by the chin and turned the younger woman's face toward her. "Except help your mother find your father. You're one of the good guys, remember?"

"I want to show whoever did this –"

This time Shego forcibly covered Kim's mouth with her hand.

"I know what you want to do. Trust me, I've been down that road. Look where I ended up." The green woman waited until she saw the redhead nod, then dropped her hand and turned to Anne. "Give us two minutes to get dressed, and we'll head out."

Anne nodded and walked through to the living room, closing the door behind her. Shego immediately rose and began to drag her crumpled catsuit on over the bra and panties in which she slept.

"Us?" Kim looked at Shego in confusion. "You're coming too?"

"Of course I am." The green woman said distractedly, dropping back onto the bed to pull on her boots. "You're my par - ... my sidekick. Plus I've only had four hours' sleep and no coffee. I feel the need to punch someone. Now get your clothes on. You can't save your father in just your love-hearts pajamas."

* * *

Shego took one look at James Possible's room and shook her head.

"Man, the organizers of this little competition sure like messing with us."

Kim and Shego had been given a four room suite: it had a living area, a small kitchen, a bathroom and a bedroom with a queen-sized double-bed. Mr Dr Possible had the equivalent of a small hotel room, with barely any space left after a single bed and a couch had been squeezed inside.

The room would have been cramped at the best of times. Right now, with the couch overturned and bedding strewn all over the floor, it felt little bigger than a cupboard.

"You should see my room." Anne joked tiredly, "It's even smaller than this.."

"No sign of his Rocketman gear." Shego closed the closet door. "Whoever took him must have taken that, too. Any chance there's a tracer hidden on it?"

"Two." Anne nodded. "But I'm not getting a reading from either of them. Whoever took him either found and disabled the tracers –"

"- or is in some sort of shielded area." The green woman finished the thought. "What would they need to block the signal?"

"Military grade hardening, or a full EMP field. Either way –"

"- it'd be a big sensor dead zone. Shouldn't be too hard to find."

"It _should_ be a big sensor dead zone. I already checked. Nothing like that on the island."

"They could have taken him off the island."

"My room overlooks the mouth of the harbor, and I had the balcony doors open. I'd have seen or heard any planes or boats as they were leaving. There's been nothing like that."

Kim watched the ping-pong exchange of observations with mounting frustration. Feeling the need to do something – anything, really – she stalked over to the couch.

"Looks like Dad put up a fight." The younger redhead noted, trying to right the large piece of furniture. Finding it too awkward to move alone, she glanced at Shego. "Give me a hand with this."

"Coming, Pumpkin."

"Actually, the fighting thing is strange." Anne frowned. "James and I always tried to avoid violence. If one of us ran into trouble, we preferred to surrender and wait for the other to rescue us. I'd plan our jobs for weeks, specifically to reduce the risk of running into trouble."

"Wait ... _you_ planned the Science Rogues' jobs?" Shego paused in the midst of lifting the couch. Anne nodded.

"I love James dearly, and he's a brilliant scientist ... without him I could never have pulled off some of the tricks we did. But his idea of a prank was putting whipped cream in the soap dispensers at town hall. Turning the Eiffel Tower upside down or beaching every Gondola in Venice? Those are mine."

"Well that explains one thing." Shego mused as she and Kim pushed the couch against the wall. "I couldn't work out why they'd take the boss hostage. It's just not done. The sidekick gets captured, they don't do the rescuing."

Kim looked back and forth between the two older women.

"What are you talking about?" she asked.

Shego grinned.

"Let me put it this way, Kimmie. 'Rocketman and Sarah Bellum' is like saying 'Ron Stoppable and Kim Possible', or 'Sally Kimball and Leroy Brown'."

"Or Professor Arronax and Captain Nemo?"

Shego blinked.

"Well, it's a bit of a stretch, but okay. Where did that come from?"

"From this." Kim crouched down where the couch had been lying before they moved it, and picked up a worn paperback copy of _20,000 Leagues Under the Sea_.

"It's one of your father's Jules Verne novels." Anne gestured at the bedside table, where several more battered books could be seen. "He brings them with him every time we go on vacation, always has them by the bed ..." she trailed off, her eyes suddenly widening. "... why is that one over there?"

Kim nodded.

"Exactly. You say Dad wouldn't normally fight, but this time he did. And this book is over here, separate from the others. Maybe he heard something about where he was being taken, and this is a clue."

Shego stared from Kim to her mother and then back again.

"You can't be serious? You two get all that from an upturned sofa and a mass market paperback?"

"You don't know my James. He wouldn't leave one of his Verne books on the floor."

"He _was_ being kidnapped." The green woman pointed out. "He may not have been given a choice. Still ... would sea water block your tracer signals?"

"If there was a lot of it." Anne nodded.

"Submarine?" Kim suggested. Her mother shook her head.

"No. At least, not a full-sized one. The harbor here isn't deep enough. They'd have to surface to get in and out through the mouth. I'd have seen or heard them. A mini-sub could do it, though ..."

Shego considered the idea.

"Mini-subs have limited range. And they're damn uncomfortable. I wouldn't want to hold a hostage on one for any length of time." She caught the look Kim was giving her. "... not that I have plans to hold any hostages. My point is: if they took him in a mini-sub, they've got an underwater base."

Anne produced a flat black object, small enough to fit in her hand.

"An underwater base will need generators, atmospheric controls ... lots of electronics. Give me two minutes to recalibrate this sensor, and we'll know where we need to go."

* * *

The guard toggled his radio.

"Central, this is Niner-Three. All clear at the harbor. Over."

"Niner-Three, this is Central. All clear confirmed." The radio crackled back. "Take a sweep up to the beach then head back. Over."

"Beach then back confirmed, Central." The guard dropped into a more personal tone. "Were you at the beach this morning, Eddie? That volleyball match ..."

"I know what you mean, man. Damn the old geezer for putting an end to it. That green babe ... wow, I'd love to find out if she was that color all over, know what I'm saying?"

"Sure do, Eddie." The guard chuckled. "Put on a fresh pot. I'll be back in twenty. Over and out." He clicked off the radio and walked away. Seconds later, three figures slipped out of the shadows and along the quay.

"Remind me to find out which guard is Eddie." Shego groused as they headed for the boats. "I'd like to offer him a close inspection of the color of my fist."

"There!" Anne whispered, pointing at a small shed at the end of the pier. "SCUBA supplies. If you give me a few minutes, I should be able to pick the lock."

"Hell with that." The green woman smirked. "You and Kimmie get a boat ready, Sarah. I'll get us the gear we need from the shed." Green plasma flared in the darkness, and the shed's door blew off its hinges. Immediately, spotlights flared and a klaxon began to wail.

Kim rolled her eyes.

"Shego's not good at subtle!" she yelled to her mother, struggling to be heard over the noise. "Especially when she hasn't had her coffee! I hope you can hotwire a boat!"

"No problem!" Anne shouted back, pointing at the nearest vessel. "Let's take that one."

"No!" Kim pointed to the next one along. "Let's take that one."

"Any particular reason?" Anne asked as they ran toward Kim's choice.

"It just looks fast!"

Less than ninety seconds later, Shego hefted three sets of wetsuits, masks and air tanks over the gunwale, then threw herself on board as well.

"Time to leave!" She shouted, sounding almost cheerful. "I think the neighbors called the cops about all the noise from this party!"

Anne popped up from beneath the captain's station, which was on a platform at the top of the vessel.

"Honey!" she called to Kim, "Have you finished casting off?"

"Yes mom!" The younger redhead called from the back of the boat.

"Then hold onto something!"

Anne slammed the large vessel into motion, swinging the wheel sharply as she did so. The boat leapt out of its mooring, side-swiping the smaller vessel in front of it, then powered out across the water. Shego clambered up a ladder to stand beside Anne.

"How far out were the electrical signals you found?" She asked as they finally outran the wail of the klaxons.

"About three miles." Anne replied, adjusting her course as she checked the display on the small black sensor. "We'll be there in ten minutes."

"Right. Kim and I will get our suits on first, then I'll take over here while you get yours." The green woman turned away and moved to the edge of the platform, ready to climb down, then blushed deeply as she saw Kim. The young redhead was already in the middle of changing. She had one of the wetsuits pulled up to her waist, and pulled off her shirt just as green woman caught sight of her.

The younger Possible was facing back toward the shore, so Shego saw nothing more salacious than a smooth expanse of pale back, muscles playing beneath the creamy skin, but that glance was enough to confirm that the redhead wasn't wearing a bra.

Kim turned, zipping up the suit as she did so, and Shego felt an odd mixture of relief and disappointment that she saw nothing more than a glimpse of cleavage. Biting back a curse, the green woman ground the heel of her hand into her forehead. _You always do this. Fall for a girl you can't have. Stop being an idiot!_

Turning her face away, Shego made a deliberately noisy descent, then began to change.

"Trust you to find a green wetsuit." Kim chuckled, pulling on her air tank and readying her mask.

"I just grabbed what was there, Kimmie." Shego was sure her smirk looked forced, but Kim didn't seem to notice. "Otherwise I'd have got you something in pink."

"No need." Kim grinned. "I think the black works on me."

It definitely did, and Shego quickly turned her attention to getting changed.

* * *

Anne was back at the helm as the boat roared the last half-mile toward its destination.

"The base is about two hundred feet down. That's very deep for plain SCUBA diving." She cautioned. "Be careful."

"We will, mom."

"What's the plan, Sarah?"

"You two make as much noise and distraction as you can. I'll find James. We'll meet back wherever they dock their mini-subs, and escape in one of those. That'll help control any decompression issues." Anne shook her head. "I hate planning on the fly like this. And I hate asking you both to risk your lives –"

"So not the drama." Kim assured her mother.

"Like I'm going to miss the opportunity to work with Sarah Bellum." Shego snorted.

Anne opened her mouth to say something more, but was interrupted by a sudden beeping from her handheld sensor.

"What is it, mom?"

"A small energy source just left the base and is headed our way. Fast."

"Torpedo?" Shego guessed.

"Probably. Time to abandon ship."

All three women leapt cleanly from the upper platform, their bodies sliding cleanly beneath the waves.

For about fifteen seconds, the boat continued to roar along ... and then it disintegrated in a sudden fireball, showering debris over an area the size of a football field. Somehow, despite the devastation, the ship's name board survived intact, splashing down face-up in the salty water.

For a second, it floated, then the inevitable effects of mass took their hold and the last remnants of the _Senior III_ slid beneath the waves.

* * *

**Author's Note:** _20,000 Leagues_ is not the kids' book reference in this part (thought I'd mention that in case anyone was offended by the idea that Verne wrote children's stories).

Shego continues to notice Kim, despite her best efforts not to. But I guess the burning question is: what dangers will our three gorgeous ladies encounter beneath the waves?


	9. Under the Sea

Shego dropped through the murky water, pausing her descent when a bright orange light streamed down from above. _Explosion. Shock wave coming._ The green woman twisted, seeking Kim and her mother. Spotting the two Possible women only a few feet away, she reached out, offering her hands.

Kim immediately understood Shego's intent. She linked arms with her mother, then lunged for the green woman's hand, grasping it just before the buffeting force of the shock wave struck them.

Shego bore the brunt of the blast, her body providing some small shelter to the other two women. It felt like being swatted with a giant hand, a sudden, full-body pressure that sent the world gray-black for a few moments. Then something squeezed her fingers and the green woman shook her head, trying to clear the wooziness. She focused on Kim, who had floated close to her, red hair drifting halo-like in the water as the younger woman checked if she was OK.

Shego squeezed Kim's hand in return, then released the other woman's palm to flash a 'thumbs up' to both Possibles. Glancing around, she caught sight of a dim glow beneath them. Shego pointed it out, getting nods of acknowledgement from both her companions. She held up a hand before they could move, however, and gestured back and forth between Kim and herself, before pointing down sharply. Then she pointed at Anne, showed her palm, then gestured down, a little less vigorously. _Wait, then follow. Get it?_

The older Possible nodded her understanding. Kim and Shego led the way down, each woman swimming with strong, even strokes, until Kim suddenly pulled up. Shego halted her own descent as the redhead pointed to their left. The green woman followed the gesture. There: two sleek, dark shapes cutting through the water toward them. _Sharks. Of course. _Despite the fact that the gesture would go totally unseen, Shego rolled her eyes.

Kim gestured at the sharks again, then held up two fingers. Then she gestured back and forth between the green woman and herself, and held up two fingers again. Finally, she pointed at herself again, then at the shark on the right. _Two of them, two of us. That one's yours. Got it, Kimmie._ Shego nodded her understanding, and the two women darted down toward the approaching predators, Kim angling right while Shego angled left. Immediately, the two sharks also separated, each tracking directly toward one of the women.

Kim had been slightly closer to the creatures to begin with, and Shego's path was at something of an angle to the sharks' approach, so it was the redhead who drew close to the marine predators first. As she did so, the young woman suddenly somersaulted in the water and began to swim away from the shark. Shego paused her own swimming, one eye still on the shark approaching her, while the other tracked the redhead. _What's Kimmie doing? _The green woman couldn't believe her partner – _sidekick!_ – had lost her nerve ... but what other reason could there be for her sudden change of direction?

Clenching a fist, Shego tried to measure the distance between them. She could generate plasma underwater, she knew that ... but it was hard work, and she'd never tried to throw it ... would it work? With a sinking feeling, she realized it wouldn't matter: the shark was coming up on Kim too fast.

The predator suddenly gave a snap of its tail, lunging forward through the water, ragged-toothed jaws agape ... and Kim rolled out of the way, legs and body brushing along the gray, bullet-like body of the shark. The redhead thrust out a hand, grabbed the shark's pelvic fin, and then swung up onto its back.

Shego shook her head. _Crazy little ... nearly gave me a heart attack_. A fast approaching shape reminded the green woman of her own danger, and she twisted in the water, throwing up a flash of plasma. The shark, startled by the sudden light and disturbance in the water, veered away. As it did so, Shego caught a reflective glint of metal from just in front of the dorsal fin.

_Control box_. So that was why Kimmie had so suddenly changed direction. She'd got close enough to see the glint of steel. _I'm still gonna kick her ass for that little stunt._

Shego's shark was turning around, slicing through the water again, heading straight for the green woman. Shego drifted, seemingly inert, waiting as those immense jaws rushed ever closer … then she channeled as much plasma as she could, flash-boiling the water around her hands. Hoping the sudden storm of steam and water had obscured the sight of both the shark and whoever was controlling it, Shego kicked hard with her feet, trying to get above the beast.

It was _just_ enough. The shark's jaws crashed home around the tip of one of Shego's fins, tearing the plastic swimming aid from the green woman's foot as it sped past her once more. But this time Shego was waiting. A second blast of plasma leapt across the few feet of water, slamming into the silver box on the creature's back. The shark lurched, its body convulsing, then suddenly righted itself and surged away through the water.

A flicker of movement sent Shego spinning, hands raised defensively, but it was just Kim. The redhead raised her hand, showing the control box from the other shark, then dropped the metal object into the murky waters.

Shego frowned, floating for a moment, then pointed at Kim, crooked one hand into an OK sign, then shrugged a question. The redhead promptly flashed a pair of thumbs up. Shego's scowl deepened as she tried to think of a way to mime 'You are in _so_ much trouble'.

When inspiration failed to come, the green woman glanced up, searching for the shape of Kim's mother above them. There she was, hanging back as instructed, and ... gesturing. _Pointing_.

Shego turned in the water, eyes trying to pierce the murkiness. What was the tournament throwing at them now?

Something moved. Something large. Much larger than the sharks. It rose slowly out of the depths, its body long and tapered. Then it seemed to split open, long tendrils waving out through the water before it. Shego sighed. _Of course. Giant squid._

* * *

_These guys have really taken their tips out of the Drakken play-book._ Shego thought as she used a brief plume of plasma to drive away one of the squid's many-suckered tentacles. _What's next, a crocodile that's swallowed a clock?_

The green woman had lost sight of Kim as the squid's thrashing tentacles stirred up the murky water still further, but she didn't really have time to worry about the redhead right now: those self-same tentacles kept grabbing for her, and she didn't care to find out what would happen if they succeeded.

Another blast of plasma fended off the same tentacle as it swooped in once more, but it was only blind instinct that make Shego kick upward immediately afterward. A second tentacle, reaching in from behind and below, narrowly missed her.

_This isn't good. I don't want to hurt this thing, but I can't find the control box_. It was time for a change of tactics. The pale woman twisted, throwing out a couple of low-powered bursts just to confuse whoever was controlling the beast, then spun upside down and kicked as hard as she could, plunging deep below the squid. It continued to grasp blindly where she had just been, and she nodded with satisfaction. Whoever was controlling it must have been temporarily dazzled by the blasts.

There was no box on the underside of the creature, so Shego kicked upwards, finally catching sight of Kim as she did so. The redhead was darting back and forth at the very limits of the squid's reach, kicking backwards as fast as she could to avoid its grip. Then suddenly things went wrong: a tentacle caught on the younger woman's air hose, ripping it out of her mouth. Kim thrashed, caught by surprise at the sudden loss of air, and immediately another tentacle reached out for her. Heart in her mouth, Shego kicked down, knowing that this time she really _would _ be too late: and then something red flashed in Kim's hand, and the flipper-like end of the tentacle recoiled as the younger woman jammed her air mask back in her mouth.

_Laser frickin' lipstick_. The green woman marveled as she kicked down again, apparently unnoticed by either the squid or its controller. Still no sign of the control box ... there! A glint of steel. _Right below its mouth. Figures._

The green woman tucked herself up and then lunged downwards, kicking smoothly with both legs together. The squid loomed larger and larger in front of her ... and then she was skimming past it, the huge, beak-like mouth mere inches from her face ... and with a flash of green plasma she destroyed the control box.

A second plasma flash persuaded the creature that these two morsels were more trouble than they were worth, and it jetted away and out of sight.

* * *

The three women swam down to the exterior of the underwater base. It was a dome-like structure, raised off the sea-bed on six pylon-like legs. Lights were spaced around its circumference, illuminating the waters around the metal structure. They also illuminated two air-locks: one large enough for mini-subs, the other clearly designed for human divers. Kim pointed at that, but both Anne and Shego shook their heads and pointed to the larger doors.

As they swam to this entry, however, Shego wondered how they were going to get inside. There was no convenient outer panel to work with, and she couldn't simply blast her way in: not without potentially flooding the whole base, anyway.

The green woman needn't have worried. Anne Possible might not have expected the events of this night, but she'd come equipped for them. Digging into the bag at her side, she pulled forth a block-like metal object and slapped it onto the wall beside the air-lock. Four red lights immediately illuminated on the block. Within seconds, the first of the four turned green. Within a minute, all four had changed color and the air lock's outer door slid wide, allowing the women inside. The outer door then closed, and the inner door began to crank open.

Shego waved Anne back, and she and Kim floated ready. Sure enough, as soon as there was a foot-wide gap, a pair of spears flashed into the airlock, ricocheting harmlessly off the walls as their momentum was quickly expended. The green woman shook her head, grinning. Some of the guys out there were nervous. And so they should be. She still hadn't got to punch anyone, yet.

As soon as the door opened another foot, Shego tossed through a couple of low-powered plasma bursts, then swam through under the cover of the dazzling blasts, Kim right on her heels. The 'fight' that followed barely deserved the name. Four guys with spear-guns wasn't even a challenge. The green woman and the redhead dispatched them in less than a minute.

"Wow. We work well together!" Kim exclaimed as she and Shego pulled themselves out of the water. The mini-sub bay was a large oval room, half-filled with water. The two mini-subs were tied off next to a floating gantry, which led to a doorway, and – presumably – the rest of the base. "The way you took out that squid's control box while I distracted it –"

"Kimmie, if you ever pull something like that again, I will personally kick your ass from here back to Middleton."

The redhead blinked.

"What?"

Seeing Anne pull herself out of the water, Shego forced herself to be calm.

"Look, Kimmie ..." The green woman explained in a low voice. "I know you're used to just doing your thing when you go on missions. And I know it was tough to communicate out there. But with some of the stuff you pulled with the shark and the squid, I –" Shego suddenly realized what she was about to say and hurriedly changed the direction of her sentence. "- can't imagine how scared your mom must have been to see it."

Kim gave the green woman a slightly perplexed look, but then nodded and shot a concerned glance at her mother. Anne was shrugging out of her air tanks and seemed not to have overheard the conversation.

"Sorry." The young redhead kept her own voice as low as Shego's. "I just want to get to dad as soon as we can."

"It's okay." Shego sighed as she remembered ten year old conversations where she'd been the one in Kim's position. _I can't believe I'm starting to sound like Hego_. "I know you're worried about your dad. Just ... try not to do something crazy. Your folks would never forgive me if I let you get hurt."

"Aw, and for a second there I though you were going to say that _you_ were worried about me." Kim offered a strange semi-smile, half teasing, half hopeful. Shego forced out a snort.

"Of course not. I hate you, remember?"

"Oh, that's right." Kim's half-smile remained. "I hate you too. Might poison your coffee when I bring it too you later."

"Okay. Just don't use anything that'll spoil the flavor. The new blend Triple S got in is pretty good."

"We're ready to go." Anne Possible interrupted. She had a small device in her hand, the screen of which glowed brightly. "The override pack I used outside has given me control of all the base security systems. I've downloaded full base schematics, including your father's location. We can go straight to him."

"I'll get him." Kim took the proffered device. "Mom, you get one of the mini-subs ready to go. We shouldn't leave them unguarded in case someone sneaks in and takes them."

"What am I supposed to do?" Shego complained.

"One of us has to stay here, in case more goons show up. Since my dad's more likely to trust me than you, I'm going to go get him. While I'm gone, I need you to look after my mom."

"I won't take my eyes off her." The green woman promised as she gave Mrs Possible's slender, wetsuit-clad form a salacious look. Kim merely rolled her eyes at the comment.

"Make sure you don't. I just want to rescue dad, go home, and crawl back into bed." The redhead flushed as Shego offered her a smug look and a sharply raised eyebrow. "Saving my father first. Innuendo later."

To Kim's surprise, the pale woman let her smirk slip back into a neutral expression and gave a nod of acknowledgement.

"Give 'em hell, Kimmie. Just remember –" she shot a meaningful glance at Anne Possible as the older redhead clambered into one of the mini-subs. "- no unnecessary risks."

"Don't worry, Shego. I'll come back to you safe and sound." The redhead smirked and ducked out of the room before the sputtering Shego could respond.

* * *

"All I'm sayin' is that we didn't sign up for this." The gruff voice was muffled by the door, but the words were easy enough to understand. Kim crouched, ear pressed to the slightly chilled metal. The sensor said her father was in the next room, but he wasn't alone.

"Gordon's right." Another voice, this one braying and strident, with an accent that was pure West Country. "Tha mission was t'take on tha Science Rogues. No-one said nout 'bout Kim Possible and tha' thar green bird."

"Yeah." The first voice continued its complaints. "And now the security systems are down and –"

Kim shook her head and glanced down at the sensor, tuning out the conversation within as she thumbed through menus to get a different schematic of the complex. _There. A ventilation shaft. Why don't they ever make those things smaller?_

The redhead trotted a short distance down the corridor, still reading the schematic. Whoever had designed the base had at least thought to include security systems in the ventilation shafts, but her mother's device – _Though from what she said before, it was probably something Dad built. _ - had disabled them all.

Thrusting the sensor inside the front of her wetsuit, Kim pulled out her laser lipstick. With a skill born from long experience, the redhead deftly cut through the first of the screws holding in the ventilation grille. The second, but the laser faded out as she turned to the third. _Must have used more power fighting the squid than I thought_. Still, two screws would be enough. Kim hooked her fingers in behind the ventilation grille, planted one foot against the wall, and pulled _hard_.

With a squeal of metal, the grille pulled halfway off the wall. Kim took a breath and yanked again, then bit off a curse as her hand slipped on the slick metal, sliding right across the razor-sharp tip of one of the severed screws.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid." The redhead muttered to herself. The screw had sliced open her palm. Not a deep cut, but painful enough to be distracting. "Always take the screws out first. You know that, Kim." _Maybe Shego was right when she said I needed to be more careful._

Kim cleaned the wound as best she could, then wrapped it carefully. After removing the severed screws from the grille, she pulled the grille itself away from the wall and slid into the shaft, wriggling her way through it until she was perched behind a second grille, overlooking the room where her father was held. She could just see him on the far side of the room, handcuffed to a chair and gagged, but seeming not to have been badly hurt. There were also three maroon-clad minions in the room. The ones she'd mentally named 'Gruff' and 'Westy' were still complaining about the unfairness of their situation. Westy had gone so far as to dig out the Official Rulebook of the International Sidekicks and Minions Union.

Twisting herself around, Kim placed her feet against the back of the grille, braced her back against the shaft, and _kicked_. The grille tore free with an almost gunshot-like sound, the thin metal plate clattering on the floor mere moments before Kim herself landed. She rolled smoothly, gathering her legs underneath her and launching a spinning snap kick that sent the first of the goons flying.

The remaining two henchmen glanced nervously at each other. The burlier of the two opened his mouth, perhaps to bark an order. Kim didn't give him the chance, snapping his head back with a palm strike to the jaw, then launching herself into a back-flip that brought her heels crashing down in the third man's chest.

"Dad, are you okay?" The redhead immediately ungagged her father's mouth, then searched for the keys to his cuffs, finding them on the silent member of the goonish trio.

"I'm fine, Kimmie-cub." He nodded absently, his mind obviously not on his own safety. "Is your mother here? Is she okay?"

"Mom's getting a mini-sub ready." Kim assured her father as she released him from the chair. "She's fine. Shego's looking after her."

"Shego?" James Possible looked surprised. "She came with you?"

Kim nodded.

"She woke up when mom came to get me, and she volunteered to come along. She's been a big help, actually. She's complained about it the whole time, of course, but her bark is worse than her bite."

"You know how I feel about circus folk, young lady."

"Dad –" Kim started, then saw the goofy smile pulling at the corner of her father's mouth, and gave him a mini-pout. "You're teasing."

"Your old dad isn't _quite_ as oblivious as he likes to pretend." James Possible admitted. "But for now, let's get my things – they're over in that cupboard there – and get back to your mother and Shego."

* * *

Senor Senior Senior was waiting for them as they docked their crowded mini-sub back at the island pier. He shook his head sadly over the battered name board that was all that survived of _Senior III_ .

"Ah, welcome back to all the Possible family and to Ms Shego." He inclined his head gracefully. "I am pleased to see you all safe and well. Alas, the same cannot be said for my yacht."

"Oh, was that boat yours?" Kim's tone was just a little _too_ innocent. Shego gave her a sharp look, which the redhead deliberately ignored.

"Indeed yes. But no matter, I shall simply have to purchase another." Senior idly passed the name board back to one of the competition staff. "As to the matter of the Science Rogue's tournament performance ... while I am very happy you are all safe and well, it _is_ against competition rules to call upon other contestants for assistance in your task. Therefore, the Science Rogues must be disqualified –"

"_What?_" Kim exploded. "My father's life was at stake!"

Senior nodded.

"Regrettably so. But that does not affect the rules of the tournament. Sarah Bellum and Rocket Man are awarded zero points."

Kim looked ready to argue, but Anne Possible laid a hand on her daughter's arm.

"It's alright, Kimmie-cub." She glanced at Senior. "Could we have a little privacy?"

"Of course. My deepest apologies for the intrusion, and for your unfortunate disqualification."

"I'm sure you're all torn up." Kim snapped. Shego frowned thoughtfully at the comment. Senor Senior Senior did not answer. Instead he simply inclined his head and withdrew. The younger redhead turned to her parents. "It's not fair! They should never have taken dad to start with!"

"Honestly, honey. The competition itself really doesn't matter to us. We weren't here to win it." Mrs Possible soothed, stroking her daughter's hair. Kim blinked.

"It doesn't? You weren't? Why did you come?" She paused, a stricken expression suddenly crossing her face. "Please tell me you're not planning to restart your careers. Fighting you would be so the drama."

Her father looked stern.

"Young lady, if you tried to arrest us I'd have to send you to your room."

"We just ..." Mrs Possible considered her words carefully. "We were just trying to recapture past glories, honey. Rekindle our youth."

"Oh." Kim clearly didn't really understand the answer. Shego, hiding a grin at the young redhead's lingering naivety, cleared her throat.

"It's been a long night, Pumpkin, and I believe that earlier someone mentioned crawling back into bed." The green woman's grin broadened as the younger woman flushed at the double entendre. "Besides, we really ought to get you back to our room and take a look at your hand. Don't want it get infected."

The redhead guiltily hid her injured hand behind her back. She cast a half-pout at her parents, hoping for support, but they were wrapped in each other's arms, James Possible nuzzling his wife's neck. Kim gave a squeak at the sight, then sighed.

"Yes, Shego."

* * *

**Author's Notes:** It's a good news / bad news kind of deal. The bad news is that I have other commitments I need to keep up with, so updates of this story will now happen roughly every 2 weeks, instead of every week.

The good news, as some of you might already have guessed from the recent addition of "BSP01" to the name of this fic, is that I have plans for a sequel to this tale. I'm not going to discuss any details right now, but "the BSPniverse" could well have a few more stories to emerge.


	10. Tender Treatment

Back in their room, Shego pulled a first aid kit out of her bag and gestured for Kim to take a seat at the kitchenette's small table. The green woman then unwound the makeshift bandage the redhead had wrapped around her injury.

"Well at least you made an effort to clean it." She admitted grudgingly. "But we'll still need to wash it properly with distilled water, then get some antiseptic on it. How'd you get this, anyway?"

Kim bit her lip, then gave a soft sigh.

"I was dumb." She conceded.

"Clearly." Shego snorted, as she pulled on a pair of disposable medical gloves and opened a pack of sterile swabs. "How specifically?"

"I was pulling a ventilation grate out of the wall and cut myself on one of the screws." Kim flushed at the glower she got from the pale woman. "I know it was stupid, Shego. I was worried about my dad."

Shego nodded as she began to gently dab Kim's wound with a now-damp swab.

"I know, Pumpkin. But you need to be careful: this cut was shallow, but it could have been deeper. You might have damaged something important. You could have needed surgery, or even lost some of the movement of your fingers."

Kim nodded silently, watching as the green woman completed cleaning the wound with water, then got out a small bottle of alcohol-based antiseptic.

"This will sting." Shego cautioned.

"It's okay. I've been through it before." Despite her words, Kim still hissed at the first touch of the antiseptic. Shego immediately paused. "Sorry. Carry on."

The redhead continued to watch as Shego continued working on her injury. The green woman's careful attention surprised the redhead. Her touches were so gentle ... almost tender.

"You like me, don't you?"

Shego felt her skin grow heated as it darkened to a deeper verdant shade. _What's she asking me?_ The green woman wondered, glancing through her lashes at the redhead. Kim's skin blazed with embarrassment. It seemed the younger woman was as surprised by her own question as Shego had been.

"I already told you, Kimmie: I _do_ swing that way, but you're not my type."

That statement was technically true, the pale woman tried to convince herself. She _had_ told Kim that. It was also avoiding the question, and they both knew it.

"I don't mean 'like me' sexually." Kim's voice was strained with the effort of keeping it steady. "I mean 'like me' like a friend."

Shego sighed and paused in tending to Kim's injury, though she did not actually release the redhead's hand.

"You know, it's not fair to ask me personal stuff like that when I'm forced to tell you the truth. Especially after you said you wouldn't." More evasion, but maybe that would be the end of it. _Yeah, right. Kimmie won't let me off that easily_. The redhead's words _did_ come as a surprise, however.

"... you're right." The younger woman admitted. "Sorry. You don't have to answer if you don't want to." Apparently emboldened by what Shego's reluctance seemed to mean, she gave a tentative smile. "_I_ like _you_, you know."

"Prin-" Maybe now wasn't the right time for pet names. "Kim ... we spent four years trying to kick each other's asses. I don't think that's a good basis for a friendship."

"But you _do_ like me, right?"

Shego sighed again, not meeting Kim's eyes. _She's not going to let this go. Oh, what the hell ... my reputation is shot, anyway. _She looked up.

"Fine. Yes, I like you. You're a lot less annoying and prissy than I thought you would be. And a lot more grown-up."

"Spankin'."

"Ugh. Pumpkin, that is _not_ how you thank someone for saying they don't think of you as a child, anymore."

Kim blinked.

"You thought of me as a kid? I thought you respected me ..."

Shego sighed.

"I've respected your _abilities_ for a long time, Kim. Do you really think I would have asked you to be my sidekick for this tournament if I didn't?" She raised a dark eyebrow, and waited for the redhead's answering nod. "Exactly. But you were a kid when I first met you ... and in my head you still were one." Shego paused and smirked. "An annoyingly gifted and frustratingly skilled kid, but a kid nonetheless."

Kim considered the green woman's words.

"Huh. I guess I can live with being 'annoyingly gifted and frustratingly skilled'."

"I'm sure." Shego's tone was dry.

"It's nice to hear you say it, though." Kim smiled. "You're not usually one for compliments. Though I guess just asking me to be your partner –"

"Sidekick."

Kim ignored the interruption.

"- in this tournament was a pretty big compliment."

"I guess." Shego shrugged noncommittally. _Just about the biggest I could give_.

"Sorry it didn't work out." Kim apologized, looking downcast. "First we get zero points, now mom and dad were disqualified ... this hasn't been a great couple of days for Team Possible."

"You and I are Team _Shego_, Sidekick-Girl." Shego dug in the medical kit for a bandage. "And ... your parents didn't seem too upset."

"Yeah ... but _you_ must be." Kim ducked her head, trying to make eye contact with the green woman. "This tournament was important to you, wasn't it?"

_Hell, yes_. Outwardly, Shego simply shrugged again.

"We did the right thing, Princess." She paused. "However much I wanted to just take the damn gem anyway." She saw the younger woman's startled frown. _Just reminding you who your new friend is, Kimmie_.

"... I wanted to as well." The green woman gaped at this admission from the redhead. Obviously her surprise showed, because Kim blushed and gave a minute shrug of her own. "I'm not _perfect_, Shego. I sometimes want to be selfish. I wanted to just be able to persuade myself that those islanders would get away."

"There was a time I wouldn't have cared whether they did or not."

"Maybe once you would have done something else." Kim touched the green woman's shoulder with her uninjured hand. "But yesterday you chose to do the right thing."

"Gah. The 'right thing'? You're not making me feel any better, Cupcake." Shego made gagging noises.

"Sorry." Kim didn't look especially repentant, the green woman noticed. "About the tournament ... they told us the island was deserted, but that wasn't true. Can we appeal about that, or something? Maybe get another mission?"

Shego shook her head.

"Judges' decision is final. They banned appeals back in the twelfth century. The world's best thieves tend to know the world's best lawyers. If the tournament allowed decisions to be challenged, it'd be years before a winner could be declared."

"Sorry."

"No b ..." Shego paused. "It's okay, Pumpkin. I made that choice too. Besides, at least now you have to erase that tape of me doing your stupid cheer."

Kim flushed, even the tips of her ears turning red. Shego fought down an urge to touch one and see if it was as hot as it looked.

"Actually ... I never hit 'record'."

"What? Why not?" Shego's eyebrow twitched. "You mean I humiliated myself for nothing?"

"Not for nothing." Kim protested. "As long as you thought there was a tape, there didn't actually need to _be_ one, right?"

Shego frowned.

"I guess."

Kim nodded.

"And if there was actually a tape, you might have found it and destroyed it. You know, if you wanted to be evil again. But if there was no tape for you to find ..."

"Then you'd always be able to hold it over me." Shego whistled. "Nasty. Kimmie, you really missed your calling with this hero deal of yours. If you wanted it, world domination would only be a matter of time."

"That's not my thing." Kim clearly felt a change of subject was in order. "You know ... it seems suspicious that we got given bad information for our mission, and then mom got put in a situation where she either had to get disqualified, or put dad in more danger than he had to be. It was like the missions were chosen to be impossible for us to complete within the rules."

Shego paused in what she was doing, then shrugged.

"The organizers like to mess with the contestants. Probably every task will have a decision like that ... where they have to do choose between the competition, and something else that you really don't want to do. It'd only be odd if the other teams _didn't_ have that happen to them." The green woman pinned Kim's bandage in place. "All done. I bet you've never had an injury that was treated better."

"I dunno." Kim gave a teasing smirk. "The bandage is as neat as one of mom's, but _she_ would also have kissed it better."

_Kissed it? _The pale woman's eyebrows shot up at the comment, a flush rising in her cheeks. Kim's smirk widened, the redhead obviously enjoying the fact that for once she had managed to shock the older woman. Shego narrowed her eyes. _Careful, Kimmie. You play with fire, you sometimes get burned._

"Sorry. Forgot." She leaned forward and gently pressed her lips to the younger woman's bandaged palm, feeling the redhead twitch in surprise. Shego gave a smirk of her own as Kim flushed scarlet, heat racing through the skin the green woman was touching. Shego straightened, her expression deliberately nonchalant as she regarded the obviously tongue-tied teen hero. "Now, I seem to recall someone promising to make me coffee."

* * *

Kim did her best to avoid the tingle from her hand as she poured water into the coffee pot. _It's just the antiseptic_ she told herself. It couldn't be anything else. After all, it wasn't like Shego's lips had _actually_ touched her skin, no matter how much the tickling sensation might feel like a smirk across her palm.

The redhead blinked, suddenly realizing that she'd filled the pot to the point of overflowing. She picked up a cup and gingerly dipped it into the water, skimming off some of the excess. _Snap out of it, Kim_. She told herself as she flicked the power switch on the pot. _You're mooning around like you've got a –_

The thought screeched to a halt as Kim's eyes widened. Blindly, she reached behind her for one of the kitchen chairs, then sat down with a weak-kneed _thump_.

"Oh crap."

"You okay, Pumpkin?" Shego immediately called from the living room.

"Uh ... yeah, fine." The redhead slumped back in her chair and closed her eyes. She opened them again to find the green woman standing at the kitchen door.

"I heard you swearing. Thought maybe your hand ..."

"No." Kim shook her head, her gaze falling on the kitchen table, where some water from her cup had slopped onto the surface. "Just spilled some water."

"Okay." Shego seemed to accept the explanation. "I'm just going to hop into the shower and try to rinse some of this salt out of my hair."

"Coffee'll be ready when you get out." Kim nodded, as nonchalantly as she could. The green woman gave her a look, not entirely buying the pretense of unconcern, then shrugged and turned away.

Wiping down the table and putting the cup in the dishwasher were mindless tasks that kept Kim distracted long enough for Shego to start her shower. With a sigh of relief, the redhead slumped back into the chair.

"Okay, you've got ten minutes to work this out." The redhead told herself, then took a deep breath and straightened up. Picturing herself in her mind, Kim looked straight ahead and spoke firmly. "You can't have a crush on Shego."

_Why not?_ The mental image asked. It might look like Kim herself, but the voice it spoke with sounded suspiciously like Shego's deeper timbered tones.

"She's my enemy!" Kim hissed to herself.

_Riiiiiiiiight_. The voice was definitely Shego's, and now the image in Kim's mind was wavering, as well. Red locks were turning darker and growing longer, and the dark green eyes were turning emerald. _You just got done admitting you were friends, remember?_

"She could be lying!"

The Kim-becoming-Shego in her mind didn't even bother answering that. Darkening lips simply gave an all too familiar smirk as bright green eyes studied black polish on the nails of hands suddenly turning pale.

Kim sighed. She'd known the protest was weak when she'd made it. She cast about for some other objection as her mental image completed its transformation into Shego. Strangely, it was the clothes that changed last, Kim's mission outfit slowly morphing into the older woman's catsuit.

"Being friends is almost as bad as being enemies." The redhead muttered at last. "I don't want to make things weird between us."

_That didn't stop you and Stoppable_. Kim's inner Shego snorted. _And the two of you are still friends, right?_

"Best friends." Kim admitted, smiling slightly at the thought of the blonde-haired boy. The first thing she wanted to do when she got back to Middleton was to see him again, and give him the gifts that were stuffed in the bottom of the still-packed bags she'd left lying in her bedroom: a genuine French cookbook for Ron, and a stuffed toy of a white hippopotamus for his sister Hannah.

_Right. So got any other objections?_ Her mental Shego asked, then gave a sudden snort. _Please tell me we're not going to go through the whole "But she's a girl" thing again. I had enough of that the first time._

Kim sighed and shook her head.

_Good. So ... Shego's smart. Funny. Has an amazing body. Don't deny it. You've been jealous of her figure since you met her. As far as you know, she doesn't need a database to keep track of all her conquests. Can you come up with even one good reason __**not**__ to be into her?_

"Actually ... I can."

_Yeah? What?_

"She's made it clear she isn't attracted to me."

_That_ finally silenced her antagonist. The mental image of Shego faded away, leaving Kim alone on the field of battle.

It didn't feel much like she'd won, though.

* * *

**Author's Notes:** Aww, poor Kimmie. I feel kinda bad about ending the chapter here, but after writing this I realized that the section I'd planned to go on with needed to move to a later chapter. So you'll have to wait a while longer to learn about Shego's first crush :-)

I originally wrote the database comment as "make notches in her bed posts", but changed it as a nod to "The Chart" from _The L Word_.


	11. False Fronts

Something was bothering Kimmie. Shego could see that, even in the few seconds it took the redhead to carry their coffees across the room. It had to be something pretty big for her to pick up on it. The green woman accepted her cup with a nod.

"Thanks, Pumpkin." She sipped at the hot beverage in lieu as she watched the younger woman over the top of her cup. Definitely something off. Not that there was much she could do about it. Heart to heart talks were not her thing. _Ms Sensitivity, I am not_. The green woman dealt with her own stress by hitting things. Her cottage near Montreal had a heavy bag for exactly that reason.

_Maybe that's not such a bad idea._

"Hey Kimmie, wanna go beat each other up after we finish these?" Dark lips smirked at the redhead's startled look. "Sparring, Cupcake. I'm sure this place has a dojo. Why don't we find it and hit the mats?"

Red eyebrows shot upwards.

"We've been fighting half the night, Shego. Haven't you had enough excitement?"

The pale woman shrugged and waved off the suggestion.

"I was promised the chance to knock some heads together, but _someone_ –" she gave Kim a pointed look. "- made me baby-sit her mother instead, and kept all the fun for herself."

"It was _my_ father –" Kim's voice started to rise.

"I'm just busting your chops, Pumpkin." Shego interrupted the angry retort. "It's not usually that easy to get under your skin."

"Sorry." Kim subsided, a little shame-faced. "I should know that ... I'm just tired and cranky, I guess." A flicker of a smile at the edge of her lips. "Besides, I wouldn't have expected you to have any issues with guarding my mother's body."

Shego coughed, trying not to spit coffee all over herself. She gave a mock glower at the younger woman, whose expression, though still a little tense, softened into a half-smile.

"Not nice, Kimmie." The green woman reproved, though she couldn't entirely hide her own half-smile. _I've always liked my women feisty_. She suppressed a sigh at the thought. _Now if only I could stop liking ones that are straight._ "So how about it? Are you up for a little sparring, or have all those European chocolates and croissants slowed you down too much?"

Dark green eyes narrowed.

"Oh, that's it. You're going down."

"But Cupcake, I didn't think you swung that way."

Shego felt a moment of satisfaction. Not only had she managed to keep her tone casual and glib, but it felt like a long time since she'd managed to make Kim go anywhere _near_ that red.

"How about we take a nap before we spar?" The younger woman replied at last, evidently feeling a change of topic was in order. "Neither of us got much sleep last night."

"I'm not sure how much sleep either of us will get right after drinking these." Shego gestured with her coffee cup.

"It's decaf."

"... philistine."

"Over-tired Kim plus caffeine is not a good plan. Trust me."

Shego raised an eyebrow at the emphatic statement.

"Sounds like there's a story there."

"Let's just say that whenever I had to pull an all-nighter to finish a college paper on time, my flat-mates ran for the hills." Kim shrugged. "Even Dominique said I got pretty scary."

"Huh." Shego took another sip of her coffee and suppressed a grimace. Somehow it didn't taste as good now she knew there was no caffeine. "So all those aborted plans Drakken had for turning you to the dark side, and all he needed to do was keep you up all night and force feed you coffee?"

"Something like that." Kim laughed, then wrinkled her brow as a thought occurred to her. "Drakken had plans to turn me evil? Other than the thing with the chips? When was that?"

"Drakken had a lot of plans you never heard about. Let me demonstrate what a typical day in the lair was like." Shego put down her coffee cup and lifted her hand up, cupping it into the shape of a mouth. Then, with a dementedly excited expression, she launched into a nasally impression of Doctor Drakken's whinier tones.

"And so, Shego, that's my master plan to conquer the world with killer kumquats! Genius, isn't it?"

The green woman fixed her own hand with a glower.

"I think it's stupid." She told it firmly.

Shego let her face fall in melodramatic woe as her 'mouth hand' drooped sadly..

"Words hurt, Shego."

"Plasma hurts more, Doc. Think of something else." The pale woman flicked a tiny scrap of green fire at her own hand, then gave the now-giggling Kim a long-suffering look. "Repeat ad nauseum, until I either got bored enough to go along with one of his inane plots, or he grew enough of a backbone to insist that he paid my salary, and I had to do as he said."

"I always wondered why you stayed with him." Kim admitted, wiping away tears of laughter.

"I wondered the same about you and Stoppable."

"It's not the same thing." Kim protested. "Ron's been my best friend since Pre-K. Drakken was just your boss."

Shego shrugged.

"Being a master villain is too much work. You have to worry about coming up with plans, handling payroll for the henchmen, checking that your benefits package is competitive ... and have you seen the insurance premiums on lairs? Nah, I don't need that grief." The green woman smirked at Kim's incredulous expression. "What? Laziness is hardly the worst of my vices, Kimmie. As bosses go, Dr D wasn't bad. He paid me well, let me take lots of vacation time, and only got fresh when he was too drunk to be scared of me ... which as long as I stayed away from karaoke nights, wasn't often."

"_Karaoke_?"

Shego snorted.

"Figures that out of everything I just said, that's what you'd pick up on. Trust me: it's not _my_ idea of a good way to spend Friday night."

"So what is?" Kim blurted, then blushed. "Sorry. I'm prying. You don't have to answer that."

"It's okay." Shego waved off the apology. "I'm partial to the three effs."

"Three effs?"

"Yeah. Fun, food and f –"

"Shego!"

"Fornication." The green woman smirked. "Why Kimmie, what word did you think I was gonna say?"

"The three effs ... do you ... do you do a lot of that?" Kim stammered her way through the question. Shego was surprised the younger woman had managed it at all, given how red she was turning.

"The first two, yeah. The last one, less often. I don't go to bed with someone unless I'm sure I can trust them."

"Because of STDs?"

"Actually, because they might be a cop. But the STDs thing is a good reason too."

"A cop? Does that really happen?" Kim's eyes went wide.

"Well, not in the sense that they have women haunting lesbian bars in the hopes of bumping into me. At least, not as far as I know. But it's not like either the police or GJ have a 'no lesbians' policy, Kimmie." Shego gave a lascivious wiggle of her eyebrows. "So there have been a couple of occasions where a friendly lady has turned out to have ulterior motives."

"It sucks that you have to worry about that."

"Yeah, I guess." Shego nodded, adding in a bitter tone. "But things were worse when I was a hero." As soon as the words were out of her mouth, she wanted to take them back. _Idiot! Why did you say __**that**__? _The green woman shot a glance at Kim, who merely looked back without saying anything. "You're not going to ask what I mean?"

The younger woman shook her head.

"I think you only let it slip out because you're just as tired as I am." The redhead put aside the last remnants of her coffee and stood, raising her arms and giving a shuddering stretch that molded her clothes to the lean lines of her body. "Let's go to bed. If you decide you want to talk about it later, we can."

"After a display like that, Pumpkin?" Shego managed to force a suggestive smirk onto her lips. "Bed sounds like a great idea. I'm just not sure how much sleeping I'll be doing."

* * *

They didn't talk about it when they woke up. Kim hadn't really expected they would, but she didn't regret the decision. _We were both punchy from adrenaline and lack of sleep. Shego may have said something and then regretted it now. So might I._

"Lunch?" The teen hero suggested, emerging from the shower with her hair up in a pink towel. "It's twelve thirty, already. We slept longer than I meant to."

"Coffee first." Shego grunted, swinging her long legs out of bed and running her hands through her hair. Kim deliberately looked away from the lean, curvaceous form, clad only in a black sports bra and shorts. She felt a flush of heat in her cheeks and the tips of her ears. Well, this was one time a blush wasn't a bad thing. Let Shego think she was just embarrassed. It was better than the green woman realizing the truth. "And I'm _not_ making decaf."

"I can do that." Kim waved the older woman back. "You get dressed." The redhead had dressed in the bathroom; black cargo pants and her trademark lime green tank-top. _And the sooner Shego covers up, the easier it'll be on my nerves_.

The redhead sighed as she entered their suite's kitchenette. Despite the fact that they turned her into a babbling moron, she found crushes based on a largely physical attraction – like the one she'd had on Josh Mankey – were a lot easier to deal with than those where an emotional bond formed first. _When Josh and I split up, I barely felt sad. When Ron told me he'd met someone new ..._

Kim shook her head. That had been her own fault, and she knew it. Trying to be so grown-up by telling Ron they shouldn't make any reckless promises when they were going to be apart for four months. Never really believing that he'd so much as look at another woman.

"And where did that get you?" she muttered to herself. Three weeks of misery that Dominique had helped her get through, leading to a new crush: one Kim had never expected. _Looks like it wasn't quite as unique as I told myself at the time_. And just like that time, physical attraction was following emotional attachment. Not good.

Resolutely putting those concerns aside, Kim dug in the cupboards, turning up a set of paper cups with a grunt of pleased surprise. There were even plastic sipper lids, which meant they could drink the coffees as they went in search of lunch.

"It's not decaf, right?" Shego asked as she entered the kitchen. The green woman was scratching her stomach, the gray fabric of her t-shirt pushed up to reveal the smooth skin. Kim hastily turned away. _**Definitely**__ not as unique as I thought_.

"No, it's full of caffeine. I put in extra just for you." She spooned sugar into her own cup, then poured milk into both. "It'll be ready in a few minutes. I'm just going to go dry my hair while we wait."

"Don't know why you bothered showering." Shego poked through the room's small refrigerator, selecting a candy bar. "You're just going to need another after I get done kicking your ass in the dojo."

"Right." Kim waved off the claim.

"'S tru." Shego answered through a mouthful of chocolate and peanut butter. She offered the remaining half of the bar to Kim. "Wun sum?"

"Thanks." Kim reached out, but the green woman yanked the chocolate away at the last second, giving the redhead a smug smirk as she did so. The teen hero gave a low growl, hand reaching out once more. Again, Shego pulled the candy out of the way, but this time Kim was expecting it. The redhead's head snapped forward, teeth pulling the sweet chocolate right out from between Shego's fingertips.

Shego blinked, staring at her empty hand, then swallowed her mouthful and gave the grinning redhead a pout.

"Hate you."

"Hut yu tu." Kim agreed amiably.

* * *

Ten minutes later, the two women stepped out of an elevator and walked along the short corridor to the main ballroom, where – according to the itinerary they'd been provided – a buffet lunch was being served.

"I need to get Triple S to tell me what brand of coffee he ordered." Shego mused as she sipped from her cup. "For straight-up brewed, this stuff's not bad."

"Espresso snob." Kim teased, draining the last of her own cup. She sighed as they entered the ballroom. "Great. Bonnie and Junior are here, and from the look on Bon-bon's face, I'd say they've had their mission and it went okay."

"Hmm?" Shego glanced at the two contestants in question. Junior was wholly absorbed in the canapés, but Bonnie Rockwaller ... yep, she was definitely watching Kim with a very self-satisfied expression. "You could be right."

The green woman's eyes drifted across the large room. The only other occupant was Falsetto Jones, who was glowering at a corner table.

A prickle ran across the back of Shego's neck. Jones was alone. No sign of his partner. And he looked one part furious, one part miserable. She frowned.

"We're not in Kansas any more, Toto."

"Huh?" Kim glanced at the green woman in confusion, just in time to have her taller companion sweep an arm around her and pull her into a clinch. The younger woman suppressed a yelp, fighting the instinctive urge to defend herself. "Uh, Shego ..."

"Just play along, Kimmie." The green woman whispered, pretending to nuzzle the redhead's neck as her gaze flicked back and forth across the hall. "Falsetto Jones is also here, and he looks like his dog just died. I think maybe he and Leon washed out of the competition too."

"If Junior and Bonnie finished their mission, that'd mean the only people left that can beat them are Sheela and Manx ..."

"Yeah." Shego agreed, as she shifted position to cup Kim's face, leaning her own head forward behind her hand so that from the floor of the room, it looked like they were kissing. She continue to whisper, her words blowing warm air over Kim's lips. "I'm starting to think there's something to your theory about the competition being fixed."

"Finally." Kim grumped. Then frowned. "How does that lead to you suddenly groping me?"

"Doy. Because everyone down there thinks we're a couple, and this way we can plot without them suspecting we're doing anything more than making out." Shego quirked an eyebrow. "Clever, aren't I?"

"Brilliant." Kim snorted. "So what are we plotting?"

The green woman sucked in a breath, thinking quickly.

"I need to talk to Junior alone. You think you can come up with a reason to talk to Rockwaller and maybe distract for a few minutes?"

Now it was the turn of Kim's eyebrows to quirk.

"Are you kidding me? If they have outscored us in this thing, I'll have to beat her off with a stick to _not_ talk to her." Kim bit her lip, then suddenly grinned. "_Especially_ if I do this."

"Wha - ?" Shego started to ask, before the Kim entwined their fingers together, pulling the green woman's hand down, and leant forward to firmly press their lips together.

_Woah. Kimmie really knows how to ... _

Conscious thought returned as the redhead broke the kiss, giving her a dazzling grin.

"One distraction, coming up."

"Uh, right." Shego stammered, feeling pretty distracted herself as she watched the redhead trot down the staircase. The pale woman shook herself, and followed a few steps behind, suppressing a smile as she saw Bonnie Rockwaller immediately move to intercept her partner. _Sidek ... oh hell. Partner_.

The green woman was down the stairs and halfway across the ballroom before she realized that at some point during the kiss, she'd dropped her coffee cup.

"Hey Junior. Good buffet?"

"Ah, Mish Shego. It ish not bad. The hors d'oeuvres are quite good, eshpecially the bruschetta, but the wine ish not of the quality of my farzher'sh usual fare."

"Thanks for the tip." Shego muttered. "I'll avoid the wine." She rarely touched alcohol in any case. Being drunk with plasma powers weren't a good combination. The green woman picked up a piece of the tomato-covered bruschetta and gave it a tentative bite. "You're right, this is very good."

Junior nodded agreeably as he daintily piled a white plate with various appetizers. Shego glanced across to make sure Kim still had Bonnie occupied, then casually leaned against the table as she nibbled on her bruschetta.

"So, I guess you heard that Kimmie and I didn't do so well on our mission for the tournament ..."

"Yesh. I told my farzher they should let you try again, but he shaid it was not the evil way. And then we practiced our villainous laughs."

"It was nice of you to try." Shego actually believed what Junior had said. The kid was pretty sweet, underneath all that narcissism. _Dumb as a pet rock, but sweet_. "Did you guys have any trouble on your run?"

"Oh, it wazh terrible." Junior shook his head. "We had to steal the jewelry of my shweetheart'sh sishters. My poor Bon-bon was sho conflicted."

"Huh." Shego popped another appetizer into her mouth so she had time to think before saying anything else. Stealing from family would certainly represent an issue for most people. _Guess the organizers knew better than to try it with me_. Still, even with the Rockwallers being rich, it was unlikely the security would present that much of a problem. "So you just broke into the house and took it all?"

"We did that, yesh, but we alsho had to get the jewelry the girlsh were wearing."

That would complicate the mission. Maybe the events were legitimate. Shego slid a glance back toward Kim, and saw Bonnie headed in her direction, a worried scowl on the tanned youngster's face. _But if they were, why would Rockwaller be so concerned about me talking to her lover boy?_

"Well, it's been great to chat, Junior." The green woman pitched her voice just loud enough for Bonnie to hear, and ran her long fingers down the young man's bicep. "If you're ever in my part of the world, look me up. Pumpkin's fun 'n' all, but sometimes a lady wants a little more ... _grunt_." With a salacious smirk at the now-fuming Bonnie, the pale woman strutted away. _**That**__ ought to make her forget all about the tournament._

"Slap me." Shego muttered as she reached Kim. The redhead blinked.

"What?"

"Slap me, and storm out." The green woman flicked a glance in Bonnie's direction. "Your friend thinks I was flirting with her boy. I want to reinforce that opinion. I'll meet you at the dojo. I need to talk to Falsetto before I come after you."

"You're sure ..."

"Slap me, Cupcake."

_Crack_.

_Well, I did ask for it._ Shego blinked startled tears of pain out of her eyes, and rubbed her cheek gingerly as Kim gave her a decent impression of a loathing look before storming up the stairs. The green woman took a moment to savor the swing of the redhead's hips as she ran up the stairs.

_Like I'd look twice at anyone else if I had __**that**__ waiting for me at home._

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Sorry for the longer than usual delay between updates. 'Most Wanted' got delayed due to my slacking off, so this chapter was also delayed.

So now Shego and Kim both suspect something rotten in the state of Denmark ... or at least in the competition. Are they right? Can they prove it? Time will tell.

It also looks like both women are coming to terms with the fact that they're attracted to the other. I mean, does anyone believe that kiss from Kim was _purely_ for Bonnie's benefit? Me neither :-)


	12. The Cinderella Gambit

Kim slammed her taped fist into the heavy bag, sending it swinging from the impact, then leapt and lashed out with a crescent kick just as the bag swung back. The firm material crumpled, the bag visibly bending from the impact. The redhead dropped into a roll as she landed, going under the back and leaping to her feet at just the right moment to hammer the bag with another punch.

"Nice moves, Pumpkin." Shego's voice came from the door. The green women sauntered into the combination gymnasium-and-dojo. "A heavy bag? Very butch of you."

Kim reached out and stopped the bag, then wiped her hair back with a taped hand.

"No cheerleading in Paris. I had to do something to keep in shape, and one of these was about all that would fit into the apartment."

"They have gyms in France, Kimmie."

The redhead wrinkled her nose.

"Not my thing. Too many muscle freaks."

"The women-only ones are okay. Especially for window shopping." The green woman arched her eyebrows suggestively, then gave a smug chuckle as Kim rolled her eyes. "Actually, Princess, I have a bag just like this one at home. Well, not _just_ like it ... mine's covered in that flame-retardant crap they use for firefighters' outfits. That and running are the main way I keep in shape."

Kim's eyes widened.

"Really? Me too. I used to go running along the Seine every morning."

"Well, I don't do anything that exotic." Shego smirked. "Just to the local doughnut store and back. They make killer cinnamon rolls."

The younger woman couldn't stop a surprised laugh.

"Well, I guess you were running off the calories on the way back. And I can't point fingers. Croissants were my weakness in Paris." The redhead admitted. "So, did you manage to talk to Junior and Falsetto?"

"Yeah. Thanks for getting Cruella away from Junior. That helped a lot."

Kim waved off the appreciation.

"No big. It was kinda fun."

* * *

Kim had trotted down the stairs, her lips still tingling from the kiss with Shego. _Bad girl,_ she remonstrated with herself, still a little breathless that she had actually done it. _That had nothing to do with Bonnie, and you know it._

"_So_ worth it." She muttered to herself. "But I can't do it again." _It's not fair to Shego to be stealing kisses under false pretenses. Not when she's said she's not interested._

The redhead made straight for the buffet table, targeting the end furthest from Senor Senior Junior, and keeping a watch on Bonnie out of the corner of her eye. Sure enough, the tanned ex-cheerleader immediately headed in her direction, a predatory gleam in her green-brown eyes. Kim sighed. There were things about Middleton she had missed while she was in Paris. Bonnie Rockwaller was not one of them.

"Hey there, Kim." The tanned girl smiled waspishly. "So sorry to hear you washed out of the competition."

Very deliberately, Kim picked up a mini burrito and popped it into her mouth, chewing thoroughly before deigning to give an answer. _Not bad. Ron would have loved them._

"My principles were more important than the tournament." She shrugged at last.

"Your principles?" The other woman snorted. "At least you didn't say 'standards'. I thought you'd given up on those when you started dating Stoppable, but now you're with Slutzilla other there? That's desperate, even for a dyke. When did you go lezzie, anyway ... did Stoppable just turn you off men for all time, or have you been ogling me in the showers all these years?"

Kim merely smiled, slightly surprised by how little Bonnie's gibes meant to her.

"Ron had nothing to do with it. Sometimes, the people I like just happen to be women." She paused, in a moment of self-realization. "But I have to actually _like_ them, before I like them." She gave Bonnie's toned body a dismissive glance. "So don't fret. I'm _never_ going to be attracted to you."

"I hear you screwed up your parents' chances, too." Bonnie gamely attempted to go back on the offensive. Kim shrugged off the charge.

"They seemed fine with it. And, like principles, family means more than the tournament, as well ... but I guess that's something _you_ wouldn't understand." As soon as she spoke the words, Kim knew she'd made a mistake. _Damn. Didn't expect that to push her buttons so hard._ Bonnie glared at her silently for a moment, then whirled and stormed toward Shego and Junior.

"Hope Shego had time to learn what she needed." The redhead muttered, as she glanced across at the green woman. Shego leaned in toward the younger Senor Senior, murmuring something that made Bonnie's back visibly stiffen, then gave the tanned ex-cheerleader a salacious smirk and sauntered in Kim's direction.

"Slap me." Shego muttered as she came within arm's reach. The redhead blinked.

"What?"

"Slap me, and storm out." The green woman flicked a glance in Bonnie's direction. "Your friend thinks I was flirting with her boy. I want to reinforce that opinion. I'll meet you at the dojo. I need to talk to Falsetto before I come after you."

"You're sure ..."

"Slap me, Cupcake."

_Crack_. Kim winced at the volume of the impact, feeling her palm sting. _Damn it, I thought she'd lean away from it more. _The redhead swallowed, forcing down the urge to apologize. That wouldn't do much for their charade. She gave the green woman what she imagined was a very lackluster glare, then ran up the stairs and out of the hall.

* * *

"I didn't hurt you with that slap, did I? I didn't mean to hit you that hard."

"We've done worse to each other." Shego shrugged it off. "Hell, for that matter I've had real girlfriends who've done worse to me." She smirked at Kim's wide-eyed look. "Never date a supervillain, Pumpkin. Break-up notes are delivered by death ray."

"I'll, uh, keep that in mind." Kim flushed a little as she spoke. Shego blinked. _Wonder what that's about? _"So ... what's the sitch? Is there something underhanded going on or not?"

Shego laughed.

"It's the King of Thieves tournament, Pumpkin. It's _all_ underhanded."

Kim sighed and gave the older woman a half-hearted glare. Shego smirked, the continued speaking.

"Oh, you mean 'is someone cheating to help Junior and Bonnie win'? Unfortunately, it looks like things might be on the level."

"Really?"

"Really." Shego shrugged. "Just like us and your folks, they got assigned missions that targeted their weaknesses. Falsetto said he and Leon had twenty minutes to steal something from Smarty Mart."

Kim just looked at her.

"Hey, Princess, it's tougher than it sounds. Smarty Mart has excellent security. Reducing losses to shoplifting is part of how they keep their prices so low." The green woman caught the bemused expression on the redhead's face. "What?"

"You sounded just like Ron for a second, there."

"There's no need to be snippy. Besides, I'm speaking from experience. I had a bitch of a time stealing the Snowman Hank DVD from there."

"Snowman Hank? You?"

"It was for Dr D." Shego said defensively.

"You got _Drakken_ a present?"

"Pumpkin, trust me. I had to put up with two months of Drakken's 'subtle hints' that he'd like a copy for Christmas. I did _not_ need to put up with two months of pouting over the fact that I hadn't got it for him."

"And the idea of simply buying it ... ?"

"Would _you_ spend money on Dr D?"

"Okay." The redhead had obviously decided to let the matter drop. "So they had to steal something from Smarty Mart. Good security or not, these aren't everyday shoplifters."

"No. But the fact that they _had_ to get it from Smarty Mart was. Falsetto told me that Camille refused to even go into the store."

"What?" Kim blinked. "I mean, Ron always accused _me_ of being a retail snob, but even I've been into Smarty Mart ... when it's the last and only alternative. And this is _Camille Leon_. She can look like anyone! No-one would know she'd ever been there!"

"I said that to Falsetto."

"What did he say?"

"He said he said that to Camille."

Kim gave the smirking Shego a mock glare.

"What did _she_ say? No! Wait ..." She interrupted the green woman before Shego could even open her mouth. "What did he say that she said?"

"You're no fun, Kimmie." Shego tossed back her hair. "He said that she said _she_ would know. Plus, I guess anyone who bought the DVD would know, too."

"Crap. I forgot about the DVDs." Kim raked a hand through her hair. "So Falsetto had to do the mission alone. Did he succeed?"

"No."

"No? Why not?"

"Because of _what_ he had to steal."

"What was it? An elephant from the pet department, or something?"

Shego shook her head.

"Ultimax 5 Superthin Gull-Wing Sanitary Pads. In the travel pack size."

"... so? He could put those in his pocket and just walk out!"

"He's a guy, Kimmie. And he's been sent to find feminine hygiene products. In the world's largest feminine hygiene section."

"So?"

"So, imagine what would have happened if you'd asked Stoppable to pick up some pads or tampons for you."

Slowly, Kim's eyes widened.

"That's ... diabolical. Did they do something that twisted to Bonnie and Junior?"

"I dunno. I never particularly liked my siblings."

"... what?"

"Bitchy and Junior's task was to steal all of her sisters' jewelry. Junior said she found it pretty tough, but they did it ..." The green woman trailed off as she noticed the narrowed, almost snarling expression on Kim's face. "Princess? What is it?"

"It's all a set-up. It's all rigged."

"It is? How do you - ?"

"Shego ... Bonnie _hates_ her sisters."

"You're sure? Junior seemed to think she was upset by it all."

"Really?" Kim sighed, obviously taking a moment to think about the possibility. Then she shook her head. "No, Shego. I admit I only met Connie and Lonnie a couple of times, but compared to them, Bonnie is the Cinderella of the family. This whole sitch stinks like Ron's old socks."

"Shit." Shego splayed her thumb and fingers over her eyes and rubbed them gently.

"Bonnie and Junior are the only people to finish their mission so far ... we have to find Sheela and Manx before they go on theirs!" Kim started for the door, then pulled up short as Shego called out to her.

"Kimmie ... we can't do that."

"What? Why not?"

"They've already headed out. Falsetto said he saw them leaving about ninety minutes ago."

* * *

"Damn it!" Kim punched the heavy bag with each vicious exclamation. "Damnit! Damn it! Damn it!"

"Pumpkin ... you gotta calm down."

"I don't _want_ to calm down."

"Well you have to." The older woman stepped in front of Kim. "You keep hitting the bag like you are doing and you could bust up your hands."

"It's not _fair_." The teen hero snarled, looking down at her hands as she clenched and unclenched her fists. Then she turned her head up, staring at Shego with slightly reddened eyes. "It's not _fair_. This competition meant so much to y ... us. And we worked so hard! Junior and Bonnie had their entry bought and paid for, and now Senor Senior Senior is fixing the whole thing for them!"

"Sheela and Manx might still beat them." Shego offered. Kim simply looked at her, and she sighed. "Yeah, I know it's not likely. Triple S will have done his homework on them, too. He's really out-foxed us, this time. We can't even appeal the decision."

"I'm sorry." Kim said at last, dropping her gaze and taking a shuddering breath.

"Sorry? Why?"

"Because if you'd picked someone else to be your sidekick you might have taken the ruby."

"I'm _not_ sorry." The green woman slipped a hand under Kim's chin and gently lifted the redhead's face so that their eyes met. "Because if I'd picked someone else to be my sidekick ... I might have taken the ruby."

Kim frowned, little furrows drawing together over the bridge of her nose.

"But ... this competition meant so much to you ..."

"It did. It does." Shego admitted, moving her hands from under the redhead's chin to rest on the shorter woman's shoulders. "But not at _that_ price. I might be a criminal, but there are some lines I promised myself I would never cross."

"Why ..." Kim paused, then straightened her posture and met Shego's gaze more firmly. "Why _did_ you become a criminal?"

The pale woman sucked in a breath as she felt her stomach tighten into a knot.

"I'm sure Hego told you all the sordid details." She forced her tone to stay light, but couldn't stop herself from releasing Kim's shoulders and folding her arms defensively over her chest.

"No." Kim shook her head. "He just said something about you becoming fascinated with villainy. I don't think he really understood, himself."

"Maybe he doesn't. Maybe he just doesn't want to." Shego fought to kept her voice neutral, but she could hear the anger and betrayal bleeding through. She felt a dizzying temptation to spill out the whole story. _Maybe she'd believe me. No ... why should she, when no-one else has?_

"You don't have to tell me about it if you don't want to." Kim rested a hand on Shego's tensed bicep, her eyes widening as she felt the rigid muscle. "But I ... I would like to hear the story."

"Why not get your pet nerd to dig into Go City's records and find out?"

Kim cocked her head to one side, a frown once more wrinkling her forehead. Shego felt a sudden, manic urge to stroke the lines way, and dug her fingers into her arms with bruising force to keep her hands from moving.

"How would _they_ know _why_?" The redhead asked, reasonably. "Only you can tell me that. Only you can know what you were thinking ... feeling."

Shego forced a brittle veneer of bravado into her expression.

"Why would you believe what I told you?"

"Because you've never lied to me."

Six simple words, but they stole the very breath from Shego's voice. She ducked her head and swallowed, forcing moisture back into her dry mouth, before she finally forced out a reply.

"Kim, we've been enemies for years ..."

"Yeah, and we've fought dozens of times. You've punched me, kicked me, thrown plasma at me, dropped me in all kinds of weird traps, and called me every name under the sun ... but you've never lied to me." Kim ducked down a little to re-establish eye contact with the taller woman's downcast gaze. "So I know that if you choose to tell me, you'll tell me the truth. And if you choose not to tell me, I'll respect that. This isn't an inquisition, Shego, it's just a question."

The green woman sighed, forcing herself to meet the younger woman's gaze. Her breath caught once more as she saw something in Kim's eyes that she had never expected to find.

Trust.

"You really want to know?"

"No." The redhead's answer stunned the pale woman. She gave Kim a fierce look, but met only a supportive one in return. "It's not that I want to _know_. It's that I would like _you_ to tell me."

Shego paused, and she silently turned to the gymnasium door and flicked a tiny puff of plasma at the lock. The metal bubbled and melted, fusing into the frame. Now no-one could enter the room without breaking in the door or smashing the lock. She didn't want anyone just walking in on them.

_This is either the bravest thing I've ever done, or the stupidest._

_Maybe both._

The green woman took a deep breath, and started to speak.

* * *

**Author's Notes:** Yes, I suck for ending it there. But I have good reasons for wanting to start the next chapter with Shego's "origin story", rather than ending this one with it. Honest :-)

I hope people enjoyed seeing Kim's perspective of the events we saw from Shego's point of view last chapter. I enjoyed writing that bit ... uber-bitch Bonnie is fun to work with!


	13. Shego's Story

"I was twelve when I first realized I was gay."

Kim, caught in the middle of lowering herself to the floor as Shego spoke, gave a squawk of surprise and lost her balance, sprawling in an ungainly heap on the exercise mats. Rolling onto her back and then into a seated position, she flicked her hair back and gave the older woman a rueful stare.

"You did that deliberately." She accused, though without real rancor.

"Maybe a little." The green woman gave an unapologetic smirk. "But it _is_ actually relevant, Princess. Anyway ... once I knew I liked girls, I started trying to spot who else might be gay, too."

"How?"

"How did I try to spot them?"

"No." Kim shook her head and rested her hands on her knees as she sat cross-legged on the mats, looking up at Shego, who sat on a bench against the gymnasium wall. "How did you know you were gay? All the women in Paris seemed to have different stories. Some had always known. Some never even thought of liking another woman until they met the right one ..." She trailed off, then shrugged. "I was just wondering how it happened for you."

"Well ... I'd noticed the girls my age getting interested in boys over the past year or so before that. But I didn't really get _why_. I mean, I could see that a certain guy was handsome, but it didn't affect me the way it seemed to affect the other girls." Shego frowned a little as she thought back to a childhood she liked to pretend never happened. "Then one evening at home I came down from my room and saw Summer Gale on the TV and _bam_ ... the flutters in the stomach and the excitement and everything else that the other girls said they felt about boys ... suddenly I felt them too."

"_Summer Gale_?" Kim's eyebrows shot up so far they almost disappeared into her hairline. "Wow. So this 'older woman' thing you've got going on isn't new, huh?"

"It was nearly fourteen years ago!" Shego protested as she folded her arms over her chest. "Summer was still in her twenties. I admit she hasn't a- ... matured ... as well as your mom has, but back then she was _smoking_."

"Or maybe it's the villain thing, rather than the age." Kim mused, deliberately ignoring Shego's protests. "I mean, mom's got the Sarah Bellum thing going on. Gale had the killer snowmen –"

"Killer _snowmen_?"

"Long story." Kim dismissed the interruption and continued speaking, a sing-song taunt in her voice. "Any other villainess crushes I should know about? Carmen Sandiego? Marisa Coulter? Maleficent? Lucy Diamond?"

"Definitely not Maleficent. I got called that enough at school." Shego gestured at her green skin, "Though being splashed with water to calls of 'I'm melting!' was more common."

"Oh." Kim's teasing grin faded. "Sorry."

"Not your fault, Pumpkin." Shego waved away the apology. "So, that was pretty much when I realized that I thought about girls the way most of the girls thought about boys. I did my best to hide it, pretending to be interested in the same celebrity crushes as the others –"

"Really?" Kim was genuinely surprised.

"I was different enough already, Princess." Shego gestured once more at her skin. "I didn't need another reason for people to hate me."

"I would have punched those jerks on the nose." Kim said heatedly, then caught the disbelieving look she was getting from the green woman. "What?"

"You're too much of a goody two-shoes to do that, and you know it."

The redhead sighed.

"Probably. But they were still jerks, and they would have deserved it."

"Definitely." Shego agreed. "But I was still buying into all of Hego's crap about 'protecting the world even if it hates and fears us' back then, so I never did it."

Kim looked incredulous.

"Protecting ... did he get that from a comic book or something?"

"Probably. Hego never even read a menu unless it had pictures to go with the words."

Kim smothered a snort of laughter, doing her best to turn it into a cough.

"So you started looking for anyone else who might be gay?"

"Yeah. Thing is, although I have many, many natural talents –" Shego smirked, "- gaydar isn't one of them. I've got a little better with experience, but at twelve? I couldn't spot a dyke in the Netherlands. And then when I was sixteen, I met Penny."

"Oh. Your first love?" Kim smiled as she leaned forward intently. She'd never expected to learn so much about Shego when she'd asked her question, and by now, she'd almost forgotten what she'd originally asked.

"... I thought so at the time." The green woman's tone was flat, and the redhead abruptly remembered where this story would end. Kim's smile faded.

"Do you want to stop?" The younger woman asked. "It's okay if you don't want to tell me."

"I've started." Shego shrugged, "May as well finish." Despite her decision, she fell silent for a moment, gathering her thoughts. "Penny was a transfer student during my second year of high school. I noticed her right away ... she was blonde and very pretty ... and there were a couple of times I thought I caught her checking out other girls. I tortured myself for about three months, trying to work out if she was gay or not."

"Wow." Kim uncrossed her legs and pulled her knees up to her chin. "I remember how hard it was for me to talk to Josh Mankey when I had a crush on him. This must have been so much worse. What did you do?"

Shego barked a laugh.

"I slipped some chocolates and a Valentine's card into her locker."

Kim gaped.

"_You_ gave a Valentine?"

"Hey, I was young and stupid ... and unbelievably desperate." Shego shrugged defensively. "I wasn't dumb enough to sign the card or anything, but I made it clear in what I wrote that it was from a girl. I wanted to see how Penny would react."

"And?"

"The next day, I found one of the chocolates I'd given her in my own locker."

"Oh wow! She had you totally busted!"

Shego shook her head.

"That's what I thought at the time. I figured she could out me any time she wanted now, so I waited until Penny was alone, and slunk over to see what she would say ... and she admitted she'd put the chocolates into a dozen different lockers, because she wasn't sure who they were from."

"Oh ... but she _was_ gay, right?"

"Yeah. She invited me for a sleep-over that weekend. First time I kissed a girl for something other than a dare. Damn near blew my mind. We snuck around for about four months after that. Always at her place ... I couldn't trust Hego not to just barge into my room at home, and even he would have figured something was up if he found me with my head between another girl's legs."

Kim swallowed.

"Oh ... you guys got pretty hot and heavy, huh?"

"No more than a lot of the straight girls were doing with guys." Shego shrugged. "And at least neither of us was going to get pregnant. But yeah ... we did get hot and heavy ... and we got careless. One day her parents came home early, and we were too wrapped up to notice. They walked right in on us."

"Oh shit."

Shego blinked, still not used to hearing coarse language from the redhead.

"Oh shit, is right." She agreed at last. "They went ballistic. They were shouting and ranting, not letting up at all. Penny started crying, so I started yelling back, and her dad got so angry he slapped me."

Kim's eyes widened, her expression showing that she knew this wouldn't end well. Shego gave a jerky nod of acknowledgment, feeling her guts knot up, even now, as she recalled the painful events.

"I hit him back. It was instinctive. I just lashed out ... and I was so angry, I lost control of my plasma. Broke his jaw and gave him second degree burns to the face. The next day, he pressed charges. Assault with a deadly weapon, grievous bodily harm ... and statutory rape."

"_What?_"

"Penny was sixteen."

"So were you!"

"Yeah, Kimmie. But I had superpowers. He claimed that I'd used threats and intimidation to coerce Penny into sleeping with me. If I was capable of hospitalizing a grown man, what would I have done to a mere girl?"

"But Penny could have told them –"

"She told them I forced her." Shego's tone was thick with anger, and she fought to keep herself under control as she watched Kim's eyes. "She said I threatened that if she didn't sleep with me, I'd burn her face so badly even her own parents wouldn't be able to look at her."

_Now it comes. The doubt. The moment where she wonders if I really _did_ rape Penny. The moment where I get betrayed again. The moment where -_

The moment where she found herself enveloped in the warmest hug she'd ever experienced.

"I'm so sorry. It's so _wrong_." Kim sniffled into Shego's neck, her arms wrapped around the green woman's shoulders. "How could they _do_ that to you?"

"Uh ..." The pale woman froze for a moment, then gave the redhead a couple of tentative, uncertain pats on the back. "It's okay, Pumpkin. It was a long time ago."

"It's _not_ okay." Kim insisted, finally loosening her hold. "Didn't your brothers do something?"

"My brothers?" Shego gave a bitter laugh. "Oh, they did something alright. They bought him off."

"What?"

"Penny's father. They bought him off. A million dollars – cash, so it couldn't be traced – and a promise that I'd never come near his family again. In exchange, he dropped all the charges."

"But ... they knew you didn't rape Penny, didn't they?" Kim's voice rose. "They _believed_ you, right?"

Shego shrugged.

"I don't know. I don't think it mattered to them whether it was true or not. Hego only cared about how a court case would reflect on Team Go. Mego only cared about how it would reflect on _him_. The Wegos ... well, they were too young to really understand what it was all about." She paused, then went on, unable to stop herself from asking the question that had been burning in her mind since that hug. "Why do _you_ believe me?"

"Like I said before, you've never lied to me." Kim's gaze was open and free from guile, her olive green eyes meeting Shego's firmly, but without challenge. "Besides ... you're not a rapist. I'd stake my life on that."

Sego flushed, her skin darkening. She dropped her eyes from Kim's and gave a short nod.

"Thanks."

"No, thank _you_. It must have been ferociously hard to tell me that."

The green woman shrugged, doing her best to seem nonchalant.

"Like I said, it was a long time ago."

"So was this when you left Team Go?"

"Yeah." Shego gave a sudden, savage grin. "I grabbed the million bucks and Hego's car, and just took off."

"You stole the _money_?"

"Hell, yes. I needed the cash, and there was plenty more available to pay off Penny's dad. You saw the Go Tower, and the Go Jet. Team Go had plenty of financial resources."

"But if you had a million dollars, why would you need to become a criminal?"

"Strictly speaking, Pumpkin, I think taking the money meant I was a criminal already." Shego gave a half-hearted smirk. "But as for why I kept doing it? Well, sixteen year olds aren't known for their fiscal responsibility. I lived the high life. The money only lasted a few months. Then I needed a way to make more. And let's face it: as a runaway high school dropout, I only had two marketable assets. I chose to sell my plasma, instead of the alternative."

"What alterna ... oh. Oh." Kim blushed as she belatedly got Shego's meaning.

"Yeah. Anyway, it turned out I was pretty good at the criminal thing. And I found I liked it. The usual teenage renegade bullshit: 'society's screwed me over, so now I'm screwing it back'."

"I think what happened to you is a _little_ out of the 'usual'."

"I guess. But I was still sixteen, and angry. I knocked about doing small time stuff for a few years. Burglaries, underground fights, that sort of thing. I did some work for Big Daddy Brotherson for a while. That got me an introduction to Jack Hench ... and that got me the job with Dr D. You know the rest of the story ... you were there for most of it."

"I can't believe Penny did that to you." Kim shook her head.

Shego shrugged.

"She was just a kid, Kimmie. She got scared."

"Still ..." The redhead protested, but then trailed off. "Is _that_ why you like older women?"

"Geez, Pumpkin." Shego rolled her eyes. "You make it sound like I'm some kind of MILF-hound."

The redhead flushed.

"I didn't mean it like that. I meant ... you want to be with someone who is mature enough to know who she wants, and not afraid of what people will say about it."

The green woman chuckled.

"Well, Kimmie, it's not that easy." _If it was, I wouldn't still be thinking about that kiss you gave me earlier._ "I've had my share of bad experiences with older women too ... but yeah, if they can't legally buy a drink, I try to steer clear."

"I can see why." The redhead acknowledged, her tone curiously flat. Shego wondered at that for a moment, but before she could say anything, the younger woman continued. "And now I guess the story ends."

"Huh?" Shego blinked.

"Earlier, when you were talking about how you became a villain, you said I knew the rest of the story." The redhead explained. "I was just thinking that this is the end of that story. After this competition, you're out of the villain business."

"Yeah." Shego nodded, then gave a small grunt of annoyance. "Though the tournament hasn't turned out to be quite the triumphant ending I'd hoped."

Kim sighed.

"I'm sorry. I know winning this tournament meant a lot to you."

"We did the right thing, Pumpkin. I don't regret it." _Much_.

"I know we did. It's just so unfair ..." The redhead scrunched up her face in frustration. "... you're the best I've ever fought, Shego. You deserve to win this tournament, but Senior's stolen it out from under you."

"Yeah, he has." Shego agreed, closing her eyes and leaning back against the wall. After a moment, her body stiffened and her eyes snapped open. "Yeah, he _has_."

"What?" Kim gave her an inquisitive look.

"Triple S. He's _stolen_ the competition." The pale woman's emerald eyes began to gleam. "Do you know what I did when Dementor stole Doctor D's favorite fusion ray?"

Kim shrugged.

"Kicked his butt and stole it back?"

"_Exactly_." The green woman emphasized the word, giving the redhead a significant look. Kim gazed back blankly for a moment, then her eyes widened as she realized what Shego was suggesting.

"Senior's stolen the tournament. You want to steal it back."

"Damn right I do. What about it, Kimmie?" Shego leaned forward, locking eyes with the redhead as she held out her hand. "You and me. Partners, working together. Think we could do it?"

Kim's eyebrows shot up, and the green woman felt her excitement stutter. _Idiot. She's a hero. She'd never go for this._ Then the redhead grinned, and hope flared through Shego's body once more.

"Do I think we could do it?" The redhead's smile grew almost predatory as she grabbed Shego's hand and clasped it firmly. "You're the best thief in the world and I'm the girl who can do anything. Who the hell could stop us?"

* * *

**Author's Notes:** The next 'Most Wanted' update is only about half done, but this was finished, so I decided to post it first.

I'm going on vacation in about five days (Indianapolis, Boston, London, Bruges, Reading, York, Edinburgh, The Orkneys, home). Not sure what impact that will have on my posting here. On the one hand, internet access will be spotty. On the other, I'll have lots of travel time in which to write.

If you're going to be at Gencon (Indy or UK) drop me a PM.


	14. Black Tie, Green Orchid

"Ah, Senor Jones." Senor Senior Senior greeted the falsetto-voiced thief. "Welcome to the gala dinner of our little tournament. We are just awaiting the arrival of our other guests. Speaking of which, will Ms Leon be joining us?"

"I have no idea." Falsetto shrugged and gave Senior a less than friendly look. "She's been sulking in her room ever since you people shafted us on our mission."

Senior spread his hands placatingly.

"I assure you, Senor Jones, all the missions were selected to provide the maximum challenge to our competitors."

"No doubt." Jones gave a sniff of disbelief, then stepped past the older man and stalked down the stairs to the crowded ballroom. Senior gave him a half-bow, the dip of his head concealing the faint flicker of a smile across his lips.

"Making friends and influencing people as usual, Triple-S?"

"Ms Shego!" Senior let his smile broaden as he straightened up. "And Ms Possible! May I say how wonderful you both look tonight?"

"You may." Shego allowed, in a tone that indicated she was bestowing a great honor. The dark-haired woman wore a shimmering, ankle-length black dress. The long skirt was split right up to the thigh, revealing a great deal of long and shapely leg, and an emerald green sash was draped about her waist, emphasizing the seductive flare of her hips. She completed the outfit with a pair of elegant black heels and a tiny green purse, hanging on a long strap from her shoulder.

"You are truly breath-taking." Senior assured the pale-skinned beauty, bending to kiss her offered hand. Then he turned to Shego's younger companion. "And you, Ms Possible! You should wear that color more often. It truly brings out your eyes."

Kim waved away the compliment.

"This? Just a little something I had lying around. No big." The 'little something' was a deep green dress with a scandalously short, diagonal-cut hemline. The sheer cloth molded to the redhead's slender, but feminine frame. It did indeed bring out her eyes, and also complimented the flame red of her hair, and the scarlet of her own purse and heels. A dark green choker, clasped with a silver heart, completed her attire. "But thanks for the compliment. It's nice to get one from _someone_." The redhead none too subtly bumped Shego with her hip, causing the green woman to flush. Even Senior felt a little heat in his cheeks at the playful gesture.

Kim rose on her tiptoes to peer past Senior, then gave a small pout and turned to him.

"Have my parents come down yet? I want to check how my dad is doing."

"... they have not arrived in the ballroom as yet." Senior recovered his focus slowly. "But I will be sure to let them know when they arrive that you would like to see them."

"Spankin'." Kim smiled, then slid her arm through a startled Shego's and gave the other woman a gentle tug. "Come on, sweetie. Let's get to the buffet before the crowd starts to build up."

"'Sweetie'?" Shego muttered as the two women reached the bottom of the stairs. "I think you just about made Triple-S pass out." _Me too_.

"Sorry." Kim gave a tiny shrug. "I just figured that if they're going to play silly games to try and make us uncomfortable, then I'd return the favor."

"Works for me." Shego chuckled, then plunged on before she could chicken out. "I didn't say anything earlier because I didn't want to make things weird, but you _do_ look amazing tonight." _**Too**__ amazing. I'm going to have to be careful not to do anything stupid._

"Thanks." Kim gave the pale woman's hand a squeeze, then - with a reluctance that might have been noticed by a less-preoccupied Shego - disengaged their arms to pick up a plate from the buffet table. "You look great too."

"Doy." Shego agreed calmly, then dodged as the redhead aimed a playful swat in her direction.

"The ballroom looks good." Kim glanced around at the cavernous space. Only a few dozen guests were currently in attendance, looking a little lost in the great hall. "Not so sure about the buffet, though. Cucumber sandwiches?"

"At least there's plenty of ginger beer." Shego snagged two of the bottles, offering one to Kim. The redhead shook her head, wrinkling her nose.

"No thanks. They got anything sugar-free?"

"Ugh. I didn't check." Shego watched amusedly as Kim, despite her proclaimed doubts about the buffet, began to pile her plate high with food. "Why do you drink that rot? It can't be because you're watching your weight ... not with the way you eat."

The shorter woman glanced at the food on her plate and gave a small shrug.

"I don't like lots of sugar. And this is mostly salad, really." The redhead up at the stairs, where more guests were filing in, then gestured at the huge video screen hanging from the otherwise blank wall between the stairs and the buffet table. "So whoever it is that organizes this thing, they like to take an active role in the prize-giving?"

"If you count appearing as distorted images and audio from a remote location as 'an active role', sure." Shego shrugged and popped a coconut-crusted shrimp into her mouth. She chewed and swallowed, then continued speaking. "They only started doing it this way at the last tournament. They used radio before that, and specially-recorded phonograph records before then. Some people think that the video-feed is still pre-recorded, like the old records were, and the organizers are actually here in person." The green woman nonchalantly gestured at the crowd with her ginger beer.

"Yeah?" Kim peered around at the audience, trying to imagine who might be one of the faceless criminals behind the tournament, and who were simply thrill-seeking spectators. "Do _you_ think they're here?"

"I doubt it. If they're willing to come within one hundred yards of me after the shit they pulled with our mission, they've got a lot more guts than sense."

Kim snickered, then looked a little guilty that she'd found the comment amusing. Finally she shrugged it off and tried one of the shrimp, herself.

"Ooh, these are good." She glanced up at the stairs again. "Mom and dad just arrived. I'm going to go check on them."

Shego nodded.

"No problem. I'll make sure the buffet table doesn't blow away now you've removed all that ballast."

"Uh huh. You do that."

* * *

Kim then threaded her way through the steadily growing crowd to her parents, who had smoothly rebuffed Senor Senior Senior's welcome and proceeded down the staircase. "Hey mom! Hey dad!" The younger redhead went up on tiptoes to kiss her mother on the cheek, not for the first time feeling a twinge of envy for her mom's extra few inches of height.

"Hi honey." Her mother kissed her in return. "You look wonderful."

"Hi Kimmie-cub ..." her father trailed off, his eyes widening. "Good gravy, young lady! What _are_ you wearing?"

"It's a dress, dad." Kim gave him a bemused look as she nibbled on one of her hors d'oeuvres.

"More like _half_ a dress." Mr Dr Possible fretted. He glanced around nervously, then sighed. "At least there aren't any boys around."

"I don't think we need to worry about boys, honey." Anne Possible patted her husband on the arm.

_What? _Kim's eyes widened. She opened her mouth to try and change the subject, forgetting she had just placed a cherry tomato in her mouth, and managed only a choked-off splutter. The young redhead coughed loudly, trying to clear the obstruction. Her mother reached out casually and slapped Kim on the back as she continued speaking, her expression blithe.

"After all, Kim only came for the competition. Nothing else."

Suppressing a sigh of relief by finally swallowing the tomato, Kim vigorously nodded her agreement.

"That's right, dad. No interest in meeting a boy, right now."

"Well, that's okay then." James Possible allowed his ruffled feathers to be soothed. "Though I still think that dress is too small."

"Do you feel okay, dad?" The teen hero now felt safe to make a determined effort to change the subject. "No injuries or side-effects from being kidnapped?"

"Everything is right as rain." Her father nodded emphatically, then slipped an arm around his wife. "After all, I've got the best bedside care in the world."

For some reason, Mrs Possible giggled at this comment. Kim tried very hard not to think about why. She was aided in this task by an interruption.

"Well, we all seem cheerful for a group of losers."

_I've never been so glad to hear Bonnie's voice._

"Or maybe you're just relieved that _someone_ from Middleton had what it took to win this thing." The tanned former cheerleader buffed her nails on her slinky, sequined purple gown, contriving to look both nonchalant and insufferably smug at the same time.

"You haven't won yet, _Bon-bon_." Kim's eyes narrowed. "Manx and Sheela aren't back yet. They could still beat you and Junior."

"_Bzzzzt_. And the 'behind the times' award goes to the girl who _can't_ do anything." Bonnie mocked, pointing up the staircase. "Those two has-beens blew it as well. D- ... Junior's dad is just about to make the announcement."

Senor Senior Senior had indeed moved to the top of the staircase, a microphone in his hand.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, if I may have your attention for a moment, please." The billionaire-turned-supervillain waited for the quite buzz of conversation to end, then continued. "I have just received word from our field observers that the final team have failed to complete their mission, following a violent disagreement between them, which subsequently led to their arrest. Accordingly, they have been disqualified from the competition." Senior paused, smiling faintly as he waited for the resulting buzz of conversation to die down. "As this completes all five teams' missions, the organizers have now commenced the process of vetting and confirming the outcome of the tournament. This process should take approximately ten minutes. When the organizers are ready to make their announcement, they will appear on the screen -" he gestured at the large video display hanging from the wall "- to do so. A warning bell will ring one minute before the announcement of the winners begins. Until then, please enjoy the buffet." Senior gave a half-bow, then stepped back and exited the great hall through a side doorway. A hubbub of noise quickly rose after his departure.

"I'm going out into the garden." Kim turned to her parents. "I need some fresh air."

"If you're going outside, you should borrow my shawl." Anne Possible undid the brooch on her shawl and passed the garment to her daughter. "I know this is a tropical island, but it's quite cool in the evenings. I don't want you catching a chill."

"Okay, mom." Kim rolled her eyes at the apparent over-parenting, then gave each of her parents a kiss on the cheek. "I'll come back when I hear the bell."

* * *

The garden was lovely: a series of neatly tended, white gravel paths winding through flower beds that shone with a riotous display of tropical colors. As she took a seat on one of the benches that were dotted around the garden, Kim allowed herself a moment to savor the beautiful surroundings. The colors were a little more muted than in brightness of day, but the garden had a sense of serenity and peacefulness at night.

The soft crunch of footsteps on the gravel paths caused Kim to sigh. _Of course, even the nicest garden might have a serpent_.

"Come out here to mope, Kim?" Bonnie Rockwaller emerged around the corner of the path and folded her arms, giving the redhead a smug look. "Less than ten minutes until I'm declared the winner of this tournament. You'll have to spend the rest of your life knowing that I was better than you."

"Please." Kim snorted. "The only thing you've ever been better at than me is being a bitch."

"Oh!" Bonnie's eyes narrowed, but if anything, her smile grew more pronounced. "You really _are_ upset, aren't you, Kim? What's the matter? Sore loser?"

"I'm _fine_ with losing." The teen hero retorted, adjusting the shawl around her shoulders. "When it's to someone who deserves it. I just don't like _cheats_."

"Oh Kim, Kim, Kim." Bonnie shook her head admonishingly. "Cheap accusations, now? Can't you just accept that this time you were beaten by the better woman?"

"Since I wasn't: no." Kim flipped back her hair and then pointed straight at her high school nemesis. "You can deny it all you want, Bonnie, but we both know exactly what happened here. Junior's dad arranged it so everyone else would get missions they couldn't possibly go through with, while you just had to steal from your sisters."

For a moment, Bonnie's eyes widened in disquiet, but then her mouth twisted into a sneer.

"Just because - unlike _some_ people - I had the strength to go through with something unpleasant -"

"I've _met_ Lonnie and Connie." Kim snapped, talking right over Bonnie's objections. "And I've seen you with them. You _hate_ your sisters. Stealing from them would have been no hardship at all, for you. Hell, you're just vicious enough to have _enjoyed_ it."

Bonnie glared.

"Believe it or not, _Kimmie_." She said icily. "Blood is thicker than water. I don't always get on with my sisters, but that doesn't mean I'd steal from them. Would _you_ steal from your brothers?"

"No." Kim admitted. She folded her own arms and leaned back on the bench. "But then, I wouldn't have come out here to _gloat_, either."

Bonnie snorted and kicked angrily with her foot, scattering white pebbles into the nearby bed of orchids.

"Of course you wouldn't." the brunette scowled. "Not _Kim Possible_. You're too good to take satisfaction from winning. You're all 'it's competing and doing your best that counts', without a thought for how it feels to be one of the people whose best _isn't good enough_."

Kim swallowed, suddenly feeling a little ashamed. _Is that what she thought I was doing? _The redhead unfolded her arms and leaned forward, dropping her hands to her knees. When she spoke again, her tone was more gentle.

"I'm sorry if I ever made you feel that way, Bonnie. That wasn't my intention."

"Don't waste your _pity_ on me, Kim." Bonnie snarled. "I don't want it and I don't need it. I beat you this time -" her words were interrupted by the bell from the ballroom, announcing that the judges' decision was made. A frosty, triumphant smile spread across her lips. "- and even if I _had_ cheated, it would be too late for you to do anything about it."

The former cheerleader turned on her heel and stalked away down the path. Left alone for a moment, Kim sighed and touched the brooch on her shawl, then stood. Gazing for a moment at the flower bed, she reached out and snapped off two orchids, then followed Bonnie inside.

* * *

Shego took Kim's arm as the younger woman entered the ballroom.

"Hey."

"Hey." Kim offered one of the two orchids - an emerald green blossom - to Shego.

"What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Put it in your hair, of course." Kim rolled her eyes and snatched the flower back, then stood on tiptoe to slip it behind the taller woman's ear. "I got one for mom, too. See?" The redhead showed Shego the second flower, with was a delicate shade of blue.

"Uh." The green woman tentatively reached up to touch the orchid in her hair. "I've never really been a flower person, Pumpkin."

"Well, if you were, you'd be an orchid person. Orchids mean strength. And luxury." _Among other things_. Kim gently guided her taller companion through the crowd until they were near her parents, then handed her mother the second blossom. She grinned impishly as she glanced up at Shego. "Or maybe you'd be a blackberry bush. All tangled and thorny and impossible to get rid of once it turns up."

The older woman snorted.

"Thanks, Princess. Should I call you a pine tree, because you're always needling? Nah, guess not ... pine trees are _tall_." The green woman smirked at Kim's squeak of outrage, then glanced across the room at Bonnie. "How'd it go with Queen Bee other there?"

"Exactly what we expected." Kim shrugged, her mouth turning down slightly. "I feel a little bad. Winning this competition means a lot to her."

"_Beating you_ means a lot to her." Shego corrected, giving the brunette a disapproving look. "The competition itself is irrelevant."

One of the tournament staff stepped forward and cleared his throat. He waited for silence to fall over the ballroom, then spoke.

"Ladies and gentleman. To introduce the tournament organizers and reveal the winner of the one hundred and twelfth 'King of Thieves' tournament, it is my pleasure to present ... Senor Senior, Senior!"

To the staff member's left, a door swung open. Almost every eye in the room turned to that door, as the silhouette of the European billionaire appeared, with the shapely outline of a woman on his arm.

_Almost_ every eye.

Kim kept her attention on Bonnie, seeing her high school rival's triumphant smile grow wider and warmer, looking almost affectionate as the brunette caught sight of her boyfriend's father.

Then the smile froze, becoming a snarling rictus of shock and disbelief. Slowly, Bonnie turned her head, her gaze meeting Kim's across the hall. The redhead saw rage and frustration in the other woman's eyes ... and then, a flat and hopeless resignation. Kim fought down the urge to apologize as the brunette gave her a curt, defeated nod, and turned back to the stage.

Where an equally stunned Senor Senior Senior stood frozen, staring in disbelief down at Bonnie in the crowd ... for on his arm, smiling serenely at the crowd, was the one woman who his eyes now told him couldn't possibly be there.

Bonnie Rockwaller.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Finally got this done! Hope you think it was worth the wait. In my defense, I've also written 1500 words of chapter 16 (yes, 16, not 15. I'm odd like that). I'm not sure about the way Bonnie came out in this chapter. I wanted her to be her usual snarky self, but I also wanted to give some insight and empathy for her behavior (like we got in the episode where she was stuck to Kim). Hopefully it worked out okay.

So, have you folks worked out what's going on with the two Bonnies (not to be confused with the old UK sketch show)?

My vacation, by the way, has been great. I'm off to Edinburgh tomorrow, and then to the Hebrides the day after that. So my internet access (which so far has been fairly reliable) may be patchy, or even nil, for the next week.


	15. And the Winner Is

"Damn right I'm the best thief in the world." Shego had immodestly agreed, earlier that day in the gymnasium. "But even _I_ need time to plan a heist. We've got –" she checked her watch. "- approximately nine hours to steal this competition out from under Triple-S. I'm not sure that's possible."

"Anything is possible for a Possible." Kim replied firmly.

"It's a nice slogan." Shego allowed. "But now we have to back it up."

"Well ... let's think about this. We got zero points, and so did Mom and Dad and Camille Leon and Falsetto Jones. I guess we can assume the same will happen to Sheela and Manx."

"Senior's obviously done his homework, so yeah, he's probably figured out a way to make sure they wash out as well."

"Which means Bonnie and Junior will win because they were the only ones with points."

"That _is_ how the competition works, Pumpkin." Shego folded her arms, obviously growing tired of the younger woman's step-by-step analysis. "Is this going somewhere?"

"I was just wondering what would happen if _everyone _got zero points."

The green woman paused, then blinked slowly.

"... I guess they'd have to treat that like any other draw."

"And what happens when there's a draw?"

"Well, I haven't heard of it ever actually _happening_." Shego admitted. "But the fundamental rule applies: judges' decision is final."

"So they'd have to pick who wins?"

"Yeah." The green woman shrugged. "Not that it matters much. Bonnie and Junior finished their mission. They got more than zero points."

"Sure. But they could still be disqualified for cheating, right?"

Shego considered the idea.

"I guess. But the people who run this tournament aren't big on ethics and morals, Pumpkin. They don't see cheating itself as a bad thing. Just getting caught doing it."

"So we'd need proof."

"Iron-clad." The green woman nodded. "And we have to make sure there's no way they can sweep it under the rug. Triple-S has played them. These aren't the sort of people who like to admit they've been had. Give them a chance and they'll pretend it never happened."

Kim's eyes widened.

"But ..." The redhead trailed off, then pulled a face. "That makes no sense! Either way, they got tricked ... pretending they didn't just lets Senior get away with it!"

"That's one way to look at it." Shego admitted. "But I think they'll see it more as 'Either way, Senior tricked us. At least this way, no-one else knows that'."

"So what you're saying is ... not only do we need to find iron-clad proof that Senior cheated, but we _also_ need to show that proof to as many people as possible?"

"Yeah." Shego kept her tone matter of fact, but her eyes never left the younger woman's face. _Still confident, Pumpkin?_

"No big." Kim emphatically answered the unspoken question. She thought for a moment. "Is the awards ceremony like the gala dinner at the beginning of the tournament? Lots of guests?"

"Yeah." The green woman nodded, her eyes narrowing as she followed the redhead's chain of thought. "Even the organizers like to make an appearance, by video relay. It's definitely our best opportunity to make the whole thing too public to be ignored."

"So now all we have to do is work out how to get the proof we need." Kim wound a flame-red curl of hair around one finger as she thought. "This sitch would be so much easier if it was a normal mission. I could just break into Senior's lair and confront him, he'd tell me his plan and unleash his spinning tops of doom, and pretty soon after that his base would be self-destructing."

Shego started.

"Wait. What did you just say?"

"His base would be -"

"Not that. Before the spinning tops of doom."

"I'd confront him and he'd tell me his plan?" Kim frowned. "I know Senior takes villainous traditions seriously, but not even he is going to stand up in front of all the guests and confess he's rigged the whole competition."

"Villainous gloating has a lot more to do with ego than with tradition, Kimmie." Shego stood and paced across the gymnasium, trying to work off some nervous energy. "But you're right that he won't do it with an audience. At least not one he knows about."

"You mean confront him and secretly record the conversation? Something like that?" Kim asked. The older woman gave an answering nod, and the teen hero turned to one side and pushed gently on the punching bag, watching it swing slowly back and forth as she considered the idea. "It might work, but it seems a long shot. Senior's bound to be suspicious if one of us confronts him. He'd probably just deny everything. Even if he does admit what he did, can either of us build a concealed camera to record him doing it? Or patch into the complex's internal camera system to tape it that way? I normally leave that stuff to Wade."

"When it comes to surveillance systems, I mainly know how to disable them." Shego admitted, addressing the second issue first. "What about your parents? Could they handle that for us if we asked them?"

Kim's eyes widened.

"As you would say: 'doy'. _I_ should have thought of that." The redhead gave a rueful grin. "I'm just not used to thinking of mom and dad as high tech supervil -" she paused, obviously uncomfortable with the word she'd been about to use.

"High tech _scoundrels_." Shego suggested.

"Thanks." The teen hero flashed a relieved grin.

"Since it seems we're stealing each other's catchphrases: 'no big'." The pale woman shrugged, trying to ignore the mild pleasure she felt at Kim's gratitude. "It's probably a more accurate term for them, anyway. Like I said before, they never really did anything outright villainous. They were something more like, say ... Turk 182."

"Turk who?" Kim looked blank. The older woman shook her head in disgust.

"Kids these days."

"Uh huh. Because you're what, all of five years older than me, grandma?"

"Nearly six." Shego thought for a moment and then sighed. "Damn. You weren't even born when that movie came out."

"You couldn't have been very old either, then."

"Oh, I only saw it a couple of years ago. It was part of my 'Kim Cattrall Week'."

"Okay, this thing you have for older women is getting just a little creepy." Kim teased. "Who's next, Nana Possible? Or maybe you should just quit the half measures and go with someone like Cleopatra?"

"I think the language barrier could be a problem with Cleo." The older woman replied, dryly. "How about we get back on topic? Unless you'd like to talk about _your_ crushes?"

"Uh ... back on topic sounds good." Kim blushed deeply, dropping her eyes to stare at the ground. Shego raised an eyebrow. _Huh. Guess there __**is**__ someone she's into. Wonder who the lucky guy is?_

"Right. So you get your parents to hack into the cameras in the base so that we can record Senior, and also patch the recording back into the live video feed for the banquet. We need the whole audience - in person or over the broadcast - to see it."

"Mom and dad can do it."

"Yeah, I know. Anything is possible for a Possible, right?" Shego's gave a grin to take the sting out of her words. "Well, riddle me this, Batgirl ... how to we persuade Triple-S to spill his plan to us in the first place?"

"Well like you said, there's always ego."

"True." Shego folded her arms and leaned back against the gymnasium wall. "But pinning our plan on the assumption that our enemies will be vain and stupid is ... well, vain and stupid."

"... yeah." The redhead sighed in agreement, and grabbed the heavy bag, resting her forehead against it as she considered the problem. After a few moments, her lips curled into a smile. "You're right. We can't rely on Senior telling _us_ what he did. But I bet he'd tell Bonnie."

Shego frowned.

"I don't know if you've noticed, Kimmie, but Bonnie-butt doesn't seem to like you very much -" the green woman broke off as she saw the smug grin on the redhead's face. Her mind raced. Then the light dawned. "You know Princess, that's pretty clever. I knew there was a reason I chose you as a sidekick."

"Partner."

Shego paused, biting down on an instinctive remark about the double meaning of 'partner'. Somehow it didn't seem as funny, any more. Instead she just nodded.

"Yeah, partner."

* * *

To Senior's credit, when confronted with two Bonnies, his look of shock lasted only a moment. Then he released the arm of the woman beside him and turned slightly, to give her a gracious nod of his head.

"Ms Leon. I seem to have mistaken you for someone else."

The Bonnie on stage gave a wide smile, her tanned skin tone lightening and her brunette hair shimmering to a bottle blonde.

"Like, totally my bad." She gave a flick of her diamond-ring encrusted hand.

Senior turned back to the bewildered crowd. He paused long enough to shoot an apologetic look toward Bonnie and Junior –

"Why is my farzher sad?"

- then opened his mouth to speak. Before he could, however, the huge video screen sprang to life, displaying an image of Senior, waiting in an antechamber outside the ballroom. A clock display in the bottom of the screen showed that the image was recorded eight minutes earlier. In the middle of the audience, Kim bounced on the balls of her feet. _Please let this have worked_.

"Do you need to go to the bathroom, or are you just trying to be tall enough to see?" A light green hand settled on her shoulder, holding her in place. Kim shot her taller companion a mock scowl.

"Hate you."

"Hate you too. Now hush and pay attention to your parents' work."

Sound cut in on the image, echoing the slow tap of Senior's cane on the ground as he walked back and forth. On stage, the flesh-and-blood billionaire was talking rapidly into a cell phone. Kim smiled. _Probably trying to get the video feed cut off. Good luck with that, Senor S. Mom and dad have it sealed up tight._

"Mister Senior!" Camille Leon entered the picture, her appearance completely indistinguishable from that of the real Bonnie Rockwaller.

"Bonnie!" Senor Senior greeted her warmly, taking her hands and kissing her cheek. "How many times must I tell you, as my son's fiancé, you should call me by my first name."

"Oh." Camille's face showed a flicker of concern, but she hid it swiftly. In the ballroom, Kim winced. Senor Senior's first name hadn't been a part of the information they'd given the blonde heiress. "Sorry. I'm a bit stressed out."

"There is no reason to be concerned." Senior said soothingly. "In a few minutes all the final checks will have been made and I will be free to announce you and Junior as the winners of the competition."

"But Kim knows we cheated!"

Watching the recording, the teen hero held her breath. This was the most delicate part of Camille's task. Although it seemed likely, they couldn't be _certain_ that Senior had told Bonnie about his plan. Which meant that Camille had to make it clear that "Bonnie" knew _now_, without specifying _when_ she'd found out.

"That weird green dyke she's teaming with find out what our mission was." Camille continued her role, speaking rapidly and without pauses. _Spankin'. Keep throwing information at him so he doesn't stop to think_. "Kim knows I hate my sisters, so she put it together: how you gave them all missions they couldn't possibly go through with, while ours was actually something I was more than happy to do. She just accosted me in the bathroom and laid it all out!" Camille flicked her hair back, then rushed on with speaking as soon as she saw Senior's mouth open. "I gave her the line that whatever my differences with my sisters, they were still my family. I don't think she believed it. What if she goes to the tournament organizers?"

"Well done." Shego muttered as she watched. "Leading question. Keeps him thinking about what you want him to think about."

"I assure you, my dear, that any accusations Kim Possible might make will have no impact on the outcome of this tournament." Senor Senior patted the false Bonnie's hand. "All she has is supposition. Even if the organizers were inclined to admit appeals, she has no firm evidence of our little ploy. And she is out of time, in any case." He gestured off screen. "Would you like to accompany me on stage for the announcement?"

"I wouldn't miss it for the world." Camille smiled.

* * *

There was a stunned silence in the ballroom, then an angry muttering arose from the crowd. Senior, his normally dark complexion turned ashen with dismay, leaned heavily on his cane. Bonnie and Junior moved to his side. Watching them, Kim was surprised to see her long-time rival put an arm around the old man's shoulders, checking on him with what seemed to be a genuine look of concern on her face.

There was a blare of noise from the video screen, cutting through the hubbub of noise and causing several people to jump in surprise. A distorted image of a cloaked figure appeared on the screen.

"Your attention please." The figure intoned, its voice unnaturally deep and somber. "It has come to our attention that there have been some irregularities in this year's competition."

"Ya think?" Shego snorted.

"Ms Possible, if you could present yourself, please."

"I'm here." Kim vaulted up onto the stage, facing one of the cameras. The air moved behind her as another figure followed, and the redhead suppressed a smile, knowing who had her back without needing to look.

"Shego." The figure's sounded deeply disapproving. "Your participation in this conversation was not requested."

"And yet, here I am." The green woman took out an emery board and used it to point at Kim. "We're a team."

"Very well." The figure gave a long-suffering sigh. "You understand that by identifying yourself with Ms Possible, you will share in any repercussions she suffers for her actions?"

"You understand that if you try and mess with me or Kimmie I'll kick your ass into next week?"

"Shego, play nice." Kim did her best to smother her smile, then turned her attention back to the camera. "How can I help you?"

"You've really done quite enough for one day." The figure said testily. "I haven't had heartburn like this since Alex Rider retired."

"My heart bleeds." Shego glanced up from filing her nails. "Do you have something to say to Kimmie, or not?"

"Ms Possible ... through your _diligent efforts_ –" the figure clearly had to force those two words through gritted teeth, "- you and your associates have uncovered some ... _irregularities_ ... in Senor Senior Senior's administration of the tournament. In light of these irregularities, we have been forced to disqualify the team of Senor Senior Junior and Bonnie Rockwaller."

The figure paused, then continued.

"This means that there is a five-way tie for first – and thus also last – place, between all the participating teams. To assist us in determining how to resolve this situation, could you please give us a brief summary of how you uncovered Senor Senior's duplicity?"

"Uh, sure." Kim shrugged. "Like Camille said to Senior when she was pretending to be Bonnie ... Shego found out that Bonnie and Junior's mission had been to steal from Bonnie's sisters. I know that Bonnie hates Lonnie and Connie, so I knew something wasn't right. So Shego and I came up with a plan ... I'd distract the real Bonnie, while Camille pretended to be her and got Senior to admit to cheating. My pare- ... the Science Rogues were the ones who patched into the security systems, and into your broadcast. And they also gave me this." Kim touched the brooch of the shawl she was wearing. "It's a simple tone transmitter. Camille had the receiver. I touched it once to let her know I had Bonnie out of the way, then again when Bonnie headed back inside. That's all there was to it. _So_ not the drama."

"So you relied on the skills of two other teams to complete this task?"

"Sure." Kim nodded. "Shego and I came up with the plan, but we needed the others to help pull it off."

"Thank you, Ms Possible. Please stand by for a further announcement." The screen blinked off.

"Hurry up and wait." Shego rolled her eyes, then critically examined one of her nails. "When this is over, I'm getting a proper manicure. And I'm spending about a week on a massage table."

Kim nodded, fighting the urge to start bouncing on the balls of her feet once more. _They need to tell us who __**won**_**, **_already._

"We have an announcement to make." The cloaked figure materialized on the screen once more. It spoke brusquely, a clearly grudging tone in its voice. "For their actions in identifying and revealing the actions of Senor Senior Senior, which might have compromised the integrity of the tournament –"

A muffled chuckle ran through the crowd at the word 'integrity'. Kim had to suppress a smile, and Shego snickered openly.

"- we have decided to award the teams of the Science Rogues, Leon and Jones, and Shego and _Partner_ –" the figure icily refused to speak Kim's name. "- a bonus of 1 point each. Thus, there is a three-way tie for first place, and the prize will be split equally amongst the three winning teams."

Without another word, the screen went blank. Kim and Shego were left on stage, in front of the entire ballroom.

"We won." The redhead laughed incredulously, scarcely able to believe it. She turned to the green woman, giving her a huge smile. "We won!"

"Yeah." Shego seemed as stunned as Kim felt. "We really did."

"Shego! We won!" Impulsively, the redhead hugged the older woman, squeezing her partner with fierce affection. "We won." She repeated into the taller woman's collarbone, then tilted her head up to look Shego in the eye, marveling at the brilliant emerald green. "You and me. We won."

And then suddenly, heart hammering in her chest, she was up on her toes and her lips were pressing against the green woman's mouth and for a glorious moment, it felt like Shego was kissing her back –

- and then the green woman jerked away, staring at her with what looked like utter horror. Kim struggled to think of something to say, some way to apologize, but she managed only an incoherent gurgle.

Shego turned and ran.

* * *

Without another word, the screen went blank. Kim and Shego were left on stage, in front of the entire ballroom. Shego blinked. _Holy shit_.

"We won." The redhead laughed incredulously, seemingly as stunned as Shego was. The younger woman turned to face her, giving her a huge smile. "We won!"

"Yeah." Somewhere inside her, a bitter little voice wanted to complain that a three-way tie wasn't _really_ winning, but Shego felt too good to listen to it. "We really did."

"Shego! We won!" Suddenly, the redhead hugged her, surprisingly strong arms squeezing her fiercely. "We won." Kim repeated, her voice slightly muffled against Shego's shoulder, then tilted her head up to look the pale woman in the eye. "You and me. We won."

_We did_ she was going to say. But suddenly she was falling into those deep green pools and instead of speaking she was leaning down and her lips were pressing against the redhead's mouth and for a glorious moment, she could fool herself that Kim was kissing her back –

- and then the green woman jerked backward, feeling stark terror course through her body. _You idiot. You just blew it, big time_. Kim was obviously stunned speechless. Her mouth opened and closed, but she managed only a choked off gurgle. _Pumpkin's so freaked out, she can't even talk._

Shego turned and ran.

* * *

**Author's Note: ** Don't you hate that part of romance stories where the two characters have a misunderstanding, that if they just took five minutes to sit down and talk to each other, would get resolved? I know I do. You'd never catch me using a cheap trick like ... oh. Oops :)


	16. Breakfast at Rosie's

"Hey Maxine." Shego slid onto one of the stools at the small cafe. The thirty-something barista behind the counter gave a nod of her close-cropped, bright purple hair.

"Hey yourself, Annie."

"Quiet today." The pale woman noted, idly watching the muscles in Maxine's well-defined arms as the older woman immediately began working the espresso machine.

"It's the snow." Maxine shrugged. "Eight inches last night. Most people are probably still clearing their driveways."

"Wasn't a problem for me." Shego gave a private smirk. _Plasma cleaned it up, no trouble_. "New nose stud?"

"Yeah." Maxine touched the little skull's head projecting from her left nostril. "I was hoping to show it off to some young honeys today, but not much chance after the storm last night, unfortunately. You like it?"

"_Tres_ butch." Shego said, then sighed with pleasure as the older woman slid a steaming latte before her.

"I got a matching pair." The older woman waggled her eyebrows, nearly causing Shego to spurt coffee out of her nose. After a semi-drunken petting session when she first came to Montreal, the green woman knew exactly where the barista's _other_ piercing was.

"Jesus, Max. Give me some warning next time." The pale woman shook her head and chuckled. "I'm not sure how I'd react if I found that looking back at me."

"Lightweight." Maxine grinned to take the sting out of her words. "You want your usual for breakfast?"

"Yeah."

"Hey, Rosie!" Maxine stuck her head through the door to the kitchen. "One Daddy-Sized breakfast! Lemonade instead of juice, eggs over easy, extra syrup."

There was a muffled noise of acknowledgment, and Maxine let the door slip closed once more.

"Ten minutes." The barista nodded at Shego's empty cup. "You want another one?"

Shego gave the question its due consideration.

"The regular pot fresh?"

"Put it on the warmer just before you walked in."

"Give me a cup of that, then."

"No problem." Maxine grabbed the pot and filled a mug, then slid cream and sugar over to Shego. "So, you're back from your business trip? How'd it go?"

_It was amazing. Right up until I blew it by kissing the straight girl_.

"The business part went fine." Shego shrugged, then realized that the barista's attention was no longer on her answer, but on something behind her left shoulder.

"Hoo-hah. Hottie alert. I tell you, she can shovel _my_ driveway any time she likes." Maxine none-too-subtly nodded toward the door. Shego smirked at the comment and twisted her head toward the TV in the corner of the café, trusting her peripheral vision to pick up the newcomer.

Her heart lurched into her throat.

Kim Possible pushed back her snow-speckled hair and stumped her way across the cafe, hastily unbuttoning her coat as she did so. The redhead was wrapped in a dozen woolen layers and a heavy parka, adding considerable girth to her usually lithe form.

_Like a walking, redheaded dumpling_. Shego scowled at the unbidden thought.

"Hi." The younger woman said softly, almost diffidently, as she stopped a pace or two short of Shego and tentatively made eye contact with the stunned former supervillain.

When Shego did not immediately speak, Maxine gave the redhead a salacious grin.

"Hi, yourself." She purred, leaning her elbows on the bar and unobtrusively flexing the muscles in her arms. "What can I get for you, sweet thing?"

"Oh." Kim flushed, her attention drawn away from Shego for the first time. "Uh, just some wholemeal toast -"

"She'll have a Daddy. No substitutions." Shego broke in, her voice sounding harsh and distant in her own ears. She flicked a glance at Max, who read the silent message clearly.

"I'll ... just be in the kitchen." The barista jerked her thumb over her shoulder. "Helping with the breakfasts. Yell if you need anything."

The green woman waited until they were alone in the room, then turned back to Kim.

"Pumpkin. To what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?" She could hear the hostility in her tone, but couldn't stop it bleeding through. "You've had a nice week off for Christmas with the family and thought you'd close out the year by selling me out to GJ? Or are you just here to shout at me?"

"GJ aren't here." The redhead replied instinctively. She paused, looking confused. "Shout at you? No ... no, I'm here to apologize."

"What?" The green woman blinked. _What's she talking about?_

"I'm here to apologize." Kim said, more firmly. She lifted her chin and met the pale woman's eyes. "Shego ... I thought we were becoming pretty good friends back at the tournament. And I know you'd made it clear you weren't interested in me any other way, and never would be, and that I should never have kissed you like I did. It was a stupid thing for me to do, but it was just an impulsive mistake. I was hoping you could forgive me and we could try to go back to being friends -"

"Wait a minute. _You _kissed _me?_" Shego interrupted, running a hand through her hair and giving the redhead a confused look. "What are you talking about?"

Shego saw her own bemused expression mirrored in the younger woman's face.

"At the end of the tournament ..." The redhead dipped her eyes and scuffed at the floor with her toe. "I mean I know you didn't want me to, but you must remember it ... after we got Bonnie and Junior disqualified. I kissed you."

"Uh ..." The green woman struggled to form a coherent sentence. "... Kimmie ... maybe you've been hit on the head or something and that's mixed up your memory, but _I_ was the one who kissed _you_."

Kim's boot paused in mid-scuff, and she slowly raised her eyes, peaking out at the older woman through her bangs. To Shego's surprise - and confusion - the redhead suddenly laughed, a sound of relief and amazement.

"_You_ kissed _me_? But ... I kissed you ..." The teen hero trailed off, and the two women stared at each other in silence for a moment, both their minds racing in circles as they kept coming back to one, seemingly inescapable conclusion.

The redhead exhaled softly, giving Shego a rueful grin that the pale woman instinctively, though uncertainly, returned. Straightening her posture, Kim shook her head in wonderment.

"Maybe we should start over." The redhead thrust out her hand. "Hello. I'm Kim Possible. It seems I'm bisexual ... or at least, some of the people I'm attracted to are women."

Shego stared. Abruptly, she realized her mouth was hanging open, and closed it with a snap. She took the offered hand and shook it, trying to figure out what to say.

"I'm Shego. I only date dykes." _Shit, that sounded harsh_. The green woman sighed as she saw a faint flush rise up the redhead's neck. "I know that was blunt, but ... I've tried relationships with girls who were 'unsure' of their sexuality, or 'experimenting' ... or 'curious'." _Yeah, like about six times, you sucker_. "It doesn't work out."

"Well." Kim cleared her throat, then shrugged off her parka and sat sideways on the bar stool next to Shego, so that she was facing the green woman. "I'm not 'unsure' about my sexuality. I like who I like. Sometimes, that happens to be a woman. And I'm definitely not looking to 'experiment'. That's not my style. I only want to be with someone I really _like_. But ..." she blushed, her eyes dropping to her lap for a moment. "... I admit I am a little curious. I've never really gone further than kissing."

"With girls?"

"With anyone." Kim paused. "Well ... I did do a bit of 'top half only', with Ron."

"Not something I want to think about, Pumpkin." Shego paused and thought for a moment, remembering the kiss. It _had_ felt like Kim was kissing back, at the time. _But then ..._ "If _you_ kissed _me_, why did you look so freaked about it, afterwards?"

"Because ..." Kim sighed. "Because you pulled away, Shego. You pulled away and you looked at me like ... like you never wanted to see me again. And I thought I'd just screwed everything up. And then you ran, and I was too scared to chase you."

"Oh." Shego ran a hand through her hair, remembering those painful moments after the sweetness of the kiss. She _had_ pulled away, and she _had_ run. But she'd had good reason. Kim Possible was straight. And crushing on straight girls was always a bad idea. Her thoughts whirling, the green woman glanced at the kitchen door. _Still no sign of Max and the breakfasts, though if I know her ..._

Placing her finger to her lips to warn Kim to keep quiet, the former supervillain vaulted over the bar and yanked open the kitchen door. Maxine, caught off-balance as she crouched against it to listen, gave a squawk and nearly fell over.

"How are those breakfasts coming, Max?"

"Uh ..." Maxine straightened, trying to look casual. "I was just coming to tell you they'll be right out."

"Great. We'll be sitting over _there_." Shego pointed to the furthest table from the bar. "Just so you know where to find us."

"Sure thing." Max gave a slightly nervous grin, then leaned in close to Shego as she turned away. "If you're stupid enough to let a doll like that go, Annie -" she whispered, "- then at least be generous enough to offer her my shoulder to cry on."

"Just get the breakfasts, Max."

* * *

"So, you really think you like me?" Shego asked, breaking the uncomfortable silence in which the two women had been sitting since they moved to the table.

"I like you." Kim shrugged. "There's no 'think' about it."

"_That_, I can believe." The pale woman snorted. "We'd make no sense as a couple, Pumpkin."

"Why not? I like you. You like me ..." The redhead paused, suddenly uncertain. "You _do_ like me, don't you? Like that, I mean? That's why you kissed me, right, not some other reason?"

Shego wanted to lie. It would protect her. It would protect Kim. _In the long run, we'd both be_ _better off_. She opened her mouth to offer some flippant remark, and made the mistake of meeting the redhead's hopeful gaze. The lie died on her lips, and she sighed in defeat. _We're going to regret this conversation, I know it. But I just can't do that to her._

"I'm attracted to you, yes. But that doesn't make a relationship a good idea, Pumpkin."

Kim opened her mouth to answer, but then closed it again as Maxine arrived with their breakfasts. The redhead's eyes grew wide as she stared at the mound of food before her.

"Shego! How am I supposed to eat all this?"

"With a knife and fork, doy." The green woman managed a flicker of a smirk.

"But ..." Kim picked up her utensils and tentatively prodded one of the huge, succulent sausages that took up the left side of the plate. "It's bigger than I am!"

"Not my fault you could answer a casting call for munchkins." Shego's smirk broadened. Then she ducked a hurled napkin from the half-scowling, half-laughing redhead.

"Well _you_ could answer a call for the wick-" The younger woman broke off, her cheeks flushing a dusky red. Shego waved for her to continue.

"You may as well say it, Princess. We both know where you were going."

"No." Kim shook her head. "I won't. I know you used to get teased about that at school."

_She remembered that?_ Emerald green eyes widened in surprise, and Shego ducked her head, sure that her own green skin was now a slightly darker shade than normal.

"Anyway ..." The green woman shrugged, idly sifting her beans with her fork, "Good girl. Bad girl. Years of being enemies. There's a list of reasons as long as my arm why a relationship between us wouldn't be a good idea. So if that's why you came to Montreal ..."

"It wasn't." Kim shook her head, then blushed as she realized that her emphatic denial might seem like an outright rejection. "Not ... not that I wouldn't be interested." The redhead paused, taking a deep, shuddering breath as she realized the words she had just spoken. "But ... when I decided to come here, I had no idea you even liked me. I just wanted to apologize for kissing you, and to ask if we could still be friends. I never ... well, you said a bunch of times you weren't into me, so it never crossed my mind that you ... you know ..."

"That I might be hot for your admittedly fine ass?" Shego grinned as Kim's cheeks flamed red from her coarse comment. "Look, when I said I wasn't interested, I was telling the truth -" she saw the redhead open her mouth, and held up a hand to forestall the expected outburst. "_When I said it_, it was true. By the time the tournament was over ..." she trailed off, and shrugged.

"After you bandaged my hand."

"What?" Shego blinked at the apparent non-sequitur. Kim blushed and suddenly found something very intriguing about her Canadian bacon.

"The first time I realized that I liked you." The redhead explained, glancing up through her fringe. "Was when I was making coffee, right after you bandaged my hand."

"Oh."

"When did you ..."

"Look Kimmie." The green woman interrupted. _It's time for some tough lov -- some tough friendship._ "We just went through a really stressful situation where we had to have each other's backs. Yeah, we learned a lot about each other. Even got to be friends. But don't make it into more than that. You -"

"_No_."

Shego blinked, taken aback by the vehemence in Kim's voice.

"What?"

"I said no." The redhead repeated, her words firm, but her lower lip trembling ever so slightly. "No. You don't get to do that. You don't get to take it back. You like me. You _said_ so."

"I know what I said." The green woman sighed and rubbed her eyes, her breakfast temporarily forgotten. "Look, Kimmie ... all I'm saying is that we were just in some exceptional circumstances, and maybe you're reading more into what you feel than is really there." Seeing the younger woman shake her head, Shego pressed on, trying to make her point. "I mean, if you _weren't_ completely straight, don't think you think you would have been attracted to a woman, at least once, before this?"

"I have."

"Huh?" The quiet answer took all the wind out of the green woman's sails.

"I have." Kim repeated. "Been attracted to another woman, I mean." The redhead put down her cutlery and took a deep breath. "I haven't told anyone about it before now, but while I was in Paris, I had a crush on Dominique."

"Dominique? The lesbian girl you were friends with?"

"Yeah." Kim fidgeted with her napkin. "After Ron told me he'd met someone new, I was pretty messed up for a few weeks. Dom was a rock for me. She really helped me hold it together. And I know what you're going to say -" the redhead anticipated Shego's planned interruption. "- and yes, it _was_ another set of exceptional circumstances. I'm not going to deny that. But it doesn't change what I felt then. Or what I feel now."

"So if you were attracted to her, why didn't you act on it?" The green woman challenged.

"Because Dom wasn't interested in me like I was interested in her."

"I find that hard to believe." Shego couldn't resist the opportunity to give Kim's figure a frankly appraising stare, engendering a gratifying blush from the younger woman.

"I don't mean that she wouldn't have slept with me." The redhead clarified. "She would. But that would have been all. Dominique doesn't do relationships."

"Nice girl." Shego's eyebrow flickered.

"She was always honest about it." Kim defended her friend. "Dom always made it clear, whenever she met someone, that she wasn't looking for anything long-term."

"You don't know _me_ all that well, Princess. How do you know I'm not just interested in a good time, like Dominique, but without the honesty to say so?"

"Well for one thing, we aren't in bed right now."

The green woman coughed in surprise at the quick rejoinder, then gave a throaty chuckle.

"Fair point. But think about it, Kim. Sure, you and me sounds like something out of a storybook; two enemies who fall in love. Real Romeo and Juliet stuff." Shego paused, waiting for the redhead's nod of acknowledgment, then continued. "But the thing about Romeo and Juliet is ... and I hope I'm not spoiling the ending for you ... the thing is, _they died_."

Kim gave a chuckle of her own. It wasn't the response Shego had expected, and she gave the redhead a half surprised, half angry look.

"Sorry." The teen hero looked genuinely contrite. The redhead speared a piece of pancake on her fork. "It's just weird hearing you cite Shakespeare to make a point."

"Yeah?" Shego huffed. "Well, I _do_ have a teaching qualification, Pumpkin."

"But ..." Kim's half-smile turned into a tiny frown of confusion. "You can't _really_, right? Not if you ran away from home at sixteen. Although Wade said it all checked out ..."

"Trust me, while Wade may be great with computers, I'm a lot sneakier than he is. But it's a little off topic, don't you think, Pumpkin?" The green woman paused a moment to savor a bite from one of Rosie's signature sausages. "Plus, I don't like talking about anything related to ... _that incident_."

"Okay."

Shego stopped with her fork halfway to her mouth, then set it down again.

"Why do you keep doing that? Asking me a question and then saying it's okay when I say I don't want to answer?"

"Because it _is_ okay." Kim was clearly surprised at the question. She leaned back in her chair, patting her stomach through her sweater. "I'm going to need an extra long run tomorrow morning." She observed, then returned to Shego's question. "I admit I'm curious to know about how you tricked Wade. But my being curious doesn't justify making you talk about something you don't want to."

"Seems you're kinda selective about that, Princess. I notice you're not letting go of the whole 'we like each other' thing."

"That's different." Kim shook her head. "I'm not asking about that just because I'm curious." She paused and gave a smile. "In any sense of the term. I came here with the hope of saving a friendship ... now you've given me the hope of something more, I can't just let that go."

"Ugh. I should have just taken your apology and kept my big mouth shut." Shego speared an individual bean for emphasis.

"Do you really mean that?"

The small, scared tone in Kim's voice sent a pang through Shego's chest. The green woman closed her eyes, not needing them open to see the pained expression on the redhead's face.

"I don't know." The green woman admitted at last, putting down her fork once more and rubbing her temples with her fingers.

"You're scared." The younger woman's eyes widened in realization.

"What?" Shego bristled at the suggestion.

"You're scared." Kim repeated, leaning forward in her chair to grasp the green woman's hand. "It's nothing to be ashamed of, Shego. I'm scared, too. I was scared to death of coming here today. I was scared of telling you I was sorry and having you shout at me ... and now I'm scared that I'm attracted to a woman and I'm even more scared that my fear will make me let her walk away." Olive green eyes locked with the retired supervillain's own emerald gaze. "I know that you're scared that if we tried being together, you might get hurt. I'm scared that I'll get hurt, too. And I'm scared that I might hurt you. But I have to overcome my fears."

"Because you're a hero?" Shego couldn't keep the bite out of her tone.

"Because if I don't, I might regret it for the rest of my life." Kim gently squeezed the green woman's hand. "Look, Shego ... I'm not saying we're fated to be together. I can't promise that if we try, it will work out. I can't even promise that you won't get hurt ... though I'll do everything I can to make sure you aren't. But I don't want to look back on this day in fifty years and wonder 'what if we'd taken the risk?'."

"And if we're a disaster together, what then?"

"Then at least we know we tried." Kim answered. "It hurt when Ron told me he'd met someone else. I cried for days. But I got past it. He and I are friends again. And I will never regret the months that we had together." The redhead offered a brave, slightly wistful smile. "I'm not asking for you to promise me anything, Shego. I'm just asking for you to give us a chance. One date. You and me. Then at least we'll know we tried."

"One date?" The green woman stalled. _Kimmie's wrong. I'm not scared. I'm terrified._

"One date."

Shego sat without speaking for several long seconds, and the redhead's brave smile slowly faded as the silence grew. Finally, Kim sighed.

"You don't think it's a good idea."

"You and me on a date? I think it's a _terrible_ idea." The green woman said with complete honesty, even as she made her decision, feeling the tiny flicker of hope. "Where are you staying? I'll pick you up at seven."

* * *

**Author's Notes:** Hey, look at that. They actually talked about things and ... well, they haven't resolved _all_ their issues, but they certainly made some progress. Huzzah!

I hope there's no-one too disappointed by the brevity of our two heroines' estrangement, but like I said way back in chapter one: this is not an angsty fic. :-)

_(Edit)_ Since a couple of people have asked: no, this is not the end of the story. I'll make it quite clear when this is over!


	17. First Date

Kim tugged down the fabric of her blouse, doing her best to ignore the fact that Shego was ten minutes late.

_She __**is**__ coming._ The redhead told herself, checking her reflection in the mirror for what felt like the fourteenth time. _She wouldn't have phoned me earlier, otherwise._

The call had come through the hotel switchboard about two hours earlier, mere minutes after Kim had arrived back in her room after a day spent exploring Montreal.

"Hey, Pumpkin." Hearing Shego's voice had sent a shiver of concern through the redhead's body. Had the green woman changed her mind? Was she calling to cancel their date?

"Uh, hi." Kim could hear the uncertainty in her own voice.

"Having second thoughts about tonight?" So, it seemed, could Shego.

"_So_ not." The teen hero said firmly. "You?"

"Second, third, and fourth." Shego gave a throaty chuckle. "You like Vietnamese food?"

Kim paused, surprised by the sudden change of topic.

"I don't think I've ever had it." She admitted. "But I'm willing to give it a try."

"Great." Shego was silent for a moment, as if thinking about what to say next, then said simply: "I'll make a booking for us at a place I know."

"Okay." Kim nodded, even though the gesture was lost over the phone. "Do I need to dress up?"

"Not really. Smart casual is fine. Wear something warm."

Kim laughed.

"It's Montreal in December, Shego. Warm was always on the agenda. So ..." The teen hero kept her tone light. "... does this call mean you're going to stop tailing me to make sure this isn't a trap?"

There was silence on the phone for several seconds. Kim winced, hoping she hadn't upset the green woman.

"You spotted me?" Surprise – verging on shock – was evident in Shego's tone.

"No." Kim admitted. "But the phone call right as I got in seemed a little convenient, otherwise."

"Yeah, I knew it would ... but I have to get home and change, so I didn't have much option."

"You could have just called me on the Kimmunicator at any time, you know."

"And have to explain to Nerdlinger why I wanted to speak to you?" Shego snorted. "I don't think so, Kimmie."

"Wade was the one who helped me find you, Shego." Kim walked to the window of her room and glanced up and down the street below the hotel. "And I'm pretty sure he was watching the tournament. I think he knows _something_ is going on."

"Even more reason not to speak to him."

"I guess." Kim shrugged, giving up on her attempt to spot the lurking green woman. "Are you watching me now?"

"Yeah." Shego admitted, though she did not volunteer her own location.

"My hair must be a mess." Kim smiled. "It was windy today."

"You look fine." The green woman's denial sounded automatic. She paused and added, in a more heartfelt tone. "Really."

"Thanks." Kim smiled. "See you tonight."

_Tap tap. Tap tap_. The sound broke Kim out of her recollection. Instinctively, the redhead turned toward the door, then frowned as she realized the noise was coming from the opposite direction. She strode over to the window and drew back the curtain.

A hover-saucer floated gently on the other side of the double-glazed glass. Shego, about to tap on the window once more, paused with her hand raised, then turned the gesture into an uncomfortable looking wave.

Kim smothered an amused smile and gave a tentative wave in response, then pointed down and raised her eyebrows in a silent question. The green woman shook her head and pointed upward.

"Roof." Shego mouthed. The redhead nodded her understanding, gave another wave, and let the curtain fall back into place.

Crossing to the bed, the teen hero scooped up the Kimmunicator and flicked it on.

"Hey Wade."

"Hey Kim." Her long-time webmaster and tech support guy gave her a friendly wave, other hand still busy on the keyboard in front of him. "What can I ... woah -" the young man broke off as he turned to face the screen, his surprise evident by the fact that his typing came to an abrupt halt. "... you look nice."

"Thanks." Kim was proud of her ensemble. Montreal's winter weather meant she couldn't rely on the traditional little black dress to do its thing, but she thought she'd managed a pretty fair effort. Wade's reaction bore her out. "Having dinner with Shego." She added, doing her best to appear nonchalant. _Sure, because I hit the town with former enemies all the time_.

Wade looked shocked enough for both of them.

"Really?" The young genius squeaked. He coughed in embarrassment, then continued in less-strangled tones. "So you guys are ... friends?" It was clear from his expression that the boy-genius knew Kim wasn't telling him everything.

"Well, we're not throwing punches at each other." Kim felt a little guilty about the evasive answer, but she wasn't ready to tell Wade anything more. _Not until I know there is something worth telling_. "Anyway: I'm in the Hotel Montreal, and I need to get to the roof. Can you hack the service elevator for me?"

"No problem." Wade's finger's flew. "What floor are you on now?"

"Third."

"I'll have it there in twenty seconds."

"Please and thank you."

* * *

"This is a mistake." Shego told herself as she hovered a few feet above the roof of the hotel. _Maybe you should have decided that __**before**__ you spent fifteen minutes working up the nerve to tap on Pumpkin's window._

"I could still run." She'd nearly done it twice already. Her bag was packed and stowed under the hover-saucer seats. She'd lose the house in Hudson and all the money held in 'Anne Shirley's' accounts, but there were other houses; other identities; other accounts. She could still run. _So why don't you?_

"I made a promise to Kimmie. One date." The green woman fought the urge to lick lips turned dry by the wind. _Riiiiight. The wind did it. _One so-called date, and then Kim would see how ridiculous this whole mutual crush thing was, and they'd go their separate ways. _Yeah, because Princess always gives up easy._

Light splashed across the rooftop as a door opened. Kim emerged, still buttoning her parka, red hair immediately whipping in the gusty wind. Shego's hands caressed the hover-saucer's controls, dropping it gently onto the top of the building.

"Evening, Pumpkin." The green woman was impressed by how calm her own voice sounded.

"Hi." The redhead gave a nervous smile and moved to the edge of the hover-saucer, looking surprised when Shego offered her a hand to climb in. "Thanks."

"No problem." The pale woman realized she was still grasping Kim's fingers in her own and hurriedly let go. "The restaurant is out in the 'burbs, so it'll take about twenty minutes to get there. Okay?"

"Sure." Kim settled into the saucer's passenger seat, then glanced up as a clear canopy slid up to enclose the cockpit. "Is that new?"

"Nah, we just used to keep the top down during missions because it made it faster to get in and out. I'm, uh ..." Shego trailed off.

"Hoping not to need to make a fast getaway, tonight?"

"Trying not to act quite so much like a wanted criminal."

"Oh." Kim crossed her ankles beneath her chair. "So the bag under the seats ... ?"

For a moment, Shego was worried. But the younger woman's tone was playful, rather than offended. After a deep breath, the green woman took a gamble.

"Baby steps, Princess. Baby steps." Shego allowed her lips to curve up slightly at the redhead's amused chuckle. It seemed Kim was trying to maintain the relaxed relationship they'd had at the tournament, rather than the earnest, uncomfortable interaction of that morning. _Perhaps tonight won't be so bad_.

"Wait. Before we go ..." Kim dug into the pocket of her heavy coat and removed a small object, wrapped in brightly-colored paper. Her eyes not quite meeting those of the green woman, she offered the package. "I got you something."

_Perhaps it'll be worse_.

"It's nothing big, but uh ... I originally bought it as a kind of peace offering for the whole kiss sitch. And now I ... well ... I figured that since I had it with me, you could have it as a belated Christmas present."

"Oh ..." Reluctantly, the green woman took the small object. It was heavier than its small size suggested. "I didn't get anything for you."

"Well since you weren't expecting to see me, I don't know why you would have." Kim gave a tentative grin. "You don't have to accept it if it makes you uncomfortable –"

"No, it's okay." Shego was confident that the only thing that would make her more uncomfortable than accepting the gift was refusing it. She took a moment to inspect the festive green and red wrapping. A tag had been attached, but not filled out.

"I wasn't sure what name to put on it." Kim flushed a little as she noticed the older woman's attention to the tag.

"Something's wrong with 'Shego'?"

"Well ..." The redhead looked down at her hands. "I just thought a present should have your real name on it."

"It _is_ my real name." The green woman couldn't resist a smirk when Kim's head snapped upward, the teen hero giving her a startled look. "Well, my legal one, anyway. Hego insisted we all have them changed when he formed Team Go."

"Oh." Kim blinked, then frowned. "You mean ... both the Wegos ... ?"

"Are actually named 'Wego'? Yeah." Shego shrugged. "I really don't know why any of us put up with Hego's crap for as long as we did."

"So ... are you going to open it?" Kim nodded toward the package.

"Oh. Of course." Shego flushed as she realized she had all but forgotten the present in her hands. She briskly tore the wrapping paper open, then paused as the glittering contents were revealed.

Kim's present was a block of glass, crystal clear. Within the block was a delicate, filigree-fine etching of a brilliant, emerald-green orchid.

"It's beautiful." The pale woman swallowed, trying to moisten her suddenly dry throat. "It must have taken you a long time to find something like this."

"_So_ not the drama. Really." Kim assured her. "I just saw it in the store and it reminded me of you."

The redhead had never been a particularly good liar, and the subtle shift of her eyes made it clear she wasn't being truthful. Not that it would have mattered if she was the most brilliant con-artist who'd ever lived. Simply by looking at the gift in her hands, Shego knew that Kim had gone out of her way to find something perfect. _Pull yourself together_. The green woman mentally scolded herself. _So Pumpkin bought you a gift. That's sweet, but it doesn't make dating her a good idea. You've been hurt this way before. More than once._

"Victoria."

"Sorry?" Kim looked confused.

"My birth name ... it was Victoria. Victoria Lockhart. But call me Shego. It's what we're both used to."

A gift like Kim's deserved a response in kind. And this was the only thing Shego could offer to match it. _Not that Pumpkin'll realize how much it means._

"Oh." Kim gave her a bemused, almost overwhelmed smile. "Victoria. It's a beautiful name." The redhead paused, looking bashful. "I know that you've always kept your original identity as private as you could. It means a lot that you were willing to share it with me. Thank you."

Shego felt her heart sink.

_I am in __**so**__ much trouble, here._

_

* * *

  
_

Entering the restaurant was like walking into a wall of heat and color. Bright banners, lavishly decorated with fantastical designs in gold thread, hung from every wall. Massive bronze lions, burnished until they shone, crouched on either side of the hostess's desk. Eddies of warm air filled the space between the walls, a testament to the building's otherwise unobtrusive heating system.

"Woah." Kim immediately began to unwind the scarf around her throat. "They like the thermostat up high in here."

"The owners are from southern Vietnam." Shego was shrugging out of her own heavy jacket as she spoke. "To them, it's cold when it drops below seventy."

"Well, I'm glad I don't have their heating bill." Kim grinned, turning to the green woman as she shed her own parka. Whatever else the redhead had been about to say immediately fled her mind. Shego might have said that 'smart casual' was sufficient for this restaurant, but the taller woman had clearly seized the opportunity to dress up. The former supervillain wore tailored black slacks that hugged her in all the right places, and an emerald green blouse with the top button undone, drawing the eye not just to the beautiful pendant around her neck, but also to the intriguing valley of her upper cleavage.

_Oh crap. I'm __**staring**__. _Kim yanked her gaze upwards, trying to ignore the heat that rushed through her as remembered all the times she'd been straddled by the statuesque beauty before her. _Woah. Shego might not believe I can be attracted to women, but there's no doubt in my mind. Or any other part of me._

"Wow." The redhead managed to say, without sounding more than half-strangled. "You look _amazing_."

"Thanks, Princess." Shego's eyes lifted to her own, and Kim felt a moment of illicit thrill as she contemplated where the green woman's gaze might have been, a moment before. "You scrub up pretty well, yourself."

"Thanks." Kim blushed at the compliment. The redhead _was_ proud of how she looked. Her pants and her jacket were dyed the same, rich, verdant hue. Olive green was a good color for her; it matched her eyes and really set off her hair. And it didn't hurt that green was clearly Shego's favorite color. The teen hero had offset the dark hues with a cream blouse and silver jewelry, chosen after a painstaking hour in front of the mirror in her hotel room. _**So**__ worth it_.

The restaurant's hostess, an attractive Vietnamese woman in a simple black dress, came forward to greet them.

"Good evening. Welcome to the Golden Turtle." The woman gave a slight bow of her head. "May I take your coats?"

"Chào Chi, Mai." Shego smiled easily at the woman, who gave a soft chuckle in response.

"Good evening, Anne. Chi khoẻ không?"

"Khoẻ, cám ơn."

"Very good." The woman smiled as she accepted Shego's coat, her tone turning gently teasing. "Your accent still needs a little work, however."

"I have trouble getting my tongue around some of the sounds." The green woman said, her eyes sliding to Kim as a smirk teased at the edge of her lips. "Know what I mean, Pumpkin?"

The blatant double-entendre sent an immediate flare of heat to Kim's face, but the challenging gleam in the pale woman's eyes made the redhead force down the instinctive urge to stammer out a denial. _Shego's deliberately pushing me. She expects me to get scared and back down._

"Well, I don't have that much data to go on, so far, but your tongue seems limber enough to me." The redhead replied, with as much poise as she could muster. She felt a tiny glimmer of satisfaction when Shego's own skin darkened in response. _Score one for Team Possible_.

"This way, ladies." If the hostess understood the barely-hidden double meaning of the conversation, she gave no sign. Instead, she led them to their table; one of only six in the tiny restaurant; and left them to look over the menus.

"You speak Vietnamese?" Kim asked Shego, once she'd settled herself. The redhead poured a glass of water as she spoke, then gestured toward the green woman's own glass with the bottle.

"Only a little. Hello, goodbye, where's the bathroom. That sort of thing." Shego nudged her glass toward Kim so the teen hero could fill it. "When it comes to other languages, my Japanese and Spanish are pretty good, and my French is steadily improving."

"I know little snippets of half-a-dozen languages, but other than English, the only one where I can really carry on a conversation is French." Kim admitted. "Learning another language was a big part of why I decided to study overseas."

Shego nodded as she opened her menu.

"You going to take a look at that?" The green woman nodded at Kim's own menu, which still lay on the table. "I can point out some of the safer options if you need help."

"Actually, I was wondering ... do you think they'd do a sampler for us? Small servings of several different traditional Vietnamese dishes?"

"Yeah, they'd probably do that." Shego nodded, her eyebrows rising at Kim's request. "I'm something of a regular here –"

"I got that impression." Kim's tone was dry, prompting a chuckle from her older companion.

"- so I'm sure they'd do that if we asked. But are you sure you want to? They have some more Americanized options ..."

"What's the point of coming to a Vietnamese restaurant and then not trying authentic Vietnamese food?" Now it was the turn of Kim's eyebrows to rise. "That'd be like going to France and only eating burgers and hot dogs."

Shego looked doubtful.

"So what, when you were in Paris you actually tried stuff like snails and frog's legs?"

"Sure."

"Really?" Doubt gave way to surprise, then a little grimace of distaste. "What do snails taste like?"

"Garlic, mostly." Kim leaned forward. "Look, Shego ... I know you have this image of me as a squeaky-clean, middle-class, goody-goody. And sure, maybe I am all those things. But I'm not _just_ those things. I'm not scared of trying new food, and I'm not scared of people knowing we're on a date."

"So you'd tell your parents about us?" The challenge was clearly back in the green woman's eyes.

"... if it turns out there's an 'us' to tell them about, yes." Kim replied, her voice steady even though her heart raced at the mere thought of that conversation. She lifted a chin and made sure to look Shego right in the eye. "But there won't ever be anything to tell anyone if you keep fighting it like you are."

For a long moment, Shego held the redhead's gaze with her own. Kim stared back, keeping her expression as calm as she could. _It had to be said, but I really hope it doesn't make her walk out on me_.

The silent tension might have stretched on indefinitely, had the waiter not chosen that moment to arrive at their table.

"Are you folks ready to order?"

"Yeah." Shego turned to face him. "We were wondering ... can you do us a sampler of several different Vietnamese dishes? Traditional items, like you'd eat at home?" As she spoke, the green woman's eyes slid toward Kim.

The redhead smiled and gave a slight nod of her head. It wasn't exactly an apology, but it might just be an offer of truce.

* * *

"Oh man, I am _so_ full." Kim leaned back in her chair and fought the urge to give her belly a Ron-like pat of satisfaction. "Those bánh bao dumplings are _amazing_."

"They sure are." Shego's eyes were half-closed, and she had a contented smile on her face. "Though I liked the soup best. Or maybe the sticky rice dessert ... ché, I think they call it."

"It was _all_ good. I'm just not sure I can walk out of here, right now." Kim looked mournful as she considered the prospect of trying to stand, and gave a heartfelt sigh of distress at the idea. "And even if I could, I'm not sure that hover-saucer is going to be able to lift us, now."

At first, the meal had been a mostly silent affair, the two women both unsure of what to say or how to say it. It was only when the flood of food began; an amazing procession of pungent, aromatic dishes, flowing almost without end from the kitchen; that the mood began to relax. It was simply impossible not to exclaim over the flavors, or to hold back from pressing a taste of something particularly good on the other woman. It was similarly impossible for Kim to refrain from laughter when Shego bit into her first Nem Nguoi; the small, chilled meatballs were _extremely_ spicy, and the green woman's face flushed almost purple before she was able to drown the heat with several long gulps of water. It had been Shego's turn to chuckle when she snared the last of the bánh bao, allowing her to taunt Kim until the redhead's plaintive pout had finally persuaded the pale woman to relinquish her prize.

"It had better cope." Shego forced herself to fully open her eyes. "It's a long way to walk home." She paused, unsure of how to proceed. The earlier tension between them had dissipated in the mutual exploration of their meal, but now the food was finished, what was there to talk about? _Need to think of __**something**__ to talk about_. "How was your Christmas?" _**Lame**_.

"Oh." Kim looked surprised by the question. She struggled back to an upright position in her chair and ran her fingers through her hair. "It was ... pretty good. I went back to my folks' place. It was a bit odd, going back to treating them as just my mom and dad, after everything that happened ..." She gave a half-shrug. "The tweebs ... my brothers, I mean ... said that France had obviously made me even more weird than I was before."

"So just a quiet celebration with the family?"

"Mostly, yeah. Nana Possible flew up from Florida, and Ron came over on Christmas Eve –"

"Isn't he Jewish?"

"Ron's not exactly what you'd call an _Orthodox_ Jew."

"Stoppable's not exactly what I'd call an orthodox _anything_." Shego couldn't help but let a little acidity into her tone as she continued. "So, he didn't spend the holidays with his new beau?"

"She was with him." Kim obviously saw the shock in Shego's expression, because she hastily explained. "I asked him to bring her. I wanted to meet her. She's my best friend's girlfriend, after all."

"Uh huh." Shego was skeptical, and didn't bother to hide it. Kim simply smiled at the green woman's unconcealed doubt.

"Really. I was upset when Ron first told me about Kit –"

"What kind of name is 'Kit'?"

"Actually, her name's really Katherine. Katherine Chen. But everyone calls her Kit. She's a student at the same cooking academy as Ron." Kim paused, evidently trying to get her thoughts back on track. "Anyway, I was upset when Ron first told me about her, and it did take me a few weeks, but I got over it before I came home from Paris. Besides ..." she gave a nervous grin. "... I'm kinda interested in someone else, now."

"Someone else, huh?" Shego gave a lazy smirk and laced her fingers together as she leaned her chair backward and rocked gently on the rear two legs. "That someone must be quite a catch to attract the great Kim Possible."

"She might be." The redhead said mildly. "But so far, she doesn't seem to want to be caught."

Shego started at the sly dig, nearly over-balancing on the chair. She grabbed the edge of the table to avoid tumbling onto her back, and fixed the redhead with a dour look.

"Not funny, Pumpkin."

"I guess that depends on where – and how – you're sitting." Kim mustered a reasonable approximation of the older woman's trademark smirk. Despite herself, Shego chuckled at the familiar expression.

"Clearly, you're feeling lively enough to get moving." The green woman stood, ignoring a groan of dismay from her younger companion. "I'll just settle up the check, and then we'll leave."

"_We'll_ settle the check." Kim started to reach for her purse.

"No, _I_ will." Shego's tone was calm, but brooked no argument. "You asked for a date, Princess, and my dates don't go Dutch."

"Okay." Kim threw her hands up in the air in mock surrender, but by the brief, sunshine-like smile that flitted across the redhead's face, Shego knew that she'd scored points by underlining that this was a date. She answered with a smile of her own.

_Maybe you should stop patting yourself on the back about that, and remember that this is a one-time deal. _The sudden, bitter thought erased the green woman's smile completely. She settled the check briskly, her thoughts far away, then pulled on her coat in silence.

"Is everything okay?" Kim's question was diffident. The redhead stood with her scarf twisted nervously in her hands.

"... yeah, everything's fine." Shego paused. "You ready to call it a night?"

"Uh ... I guess ... I mean, if you are." The teen hero's face fell into an expression of bleak disappointment.

It was the escape route she'd been looking for all night. She had given Princess the one date she'd promised. All she had to do was say yes, and the night would be over.

_But I'm not ready for it to be._

"Actually, if you're not too tired, maybe I could show you Montreal's best view?"

* * *

"Wow." Kim's voice was soft, the redhead seeming reluctant to spoil the peaceful moment. Shego had landed the hover-saucer near the summit of Mont Royal, the seven-hundred foot peak that was the highest point on Montreal Island. The two women now looked across the city's skyline, the office towers and other buildings glowing in the darkness of the winter night.

"Cool, isn't it?" Shego loved this view of the city.

"A bit more than cool." Kim half a ghost of a chuckle, hugging her arms around herself in an effort to keep warm.

"Here." The green woman stepped behind her shorter companion and slid her arms around Kim, but kept her hands a few inches away from the younger woman's chest. Concentrating briefly, the green woman let a tiny trickle of her power flare from her hands, bathing them both in a gently warming glow.

"Wow." Kim repeated her earlier expression, but her attention was no longer on the view. "... I'd totally forgotten how much control you have over your power. That's ferociously cool."

Shego blinked. As Kim had spoken, the redhead had settled back against the taller woman, and she know found herself uncomfortably aware of just how intimate their position could become.

"... well, they're still _flames_ ... so be careful." The green woman struggled to gather her thoughts enough to form a sentence.

"I will." Kim promised. She fell silent for a moment, then spoke again, in a very small voice. "Do you want to get together and do something again tomorrow?"

Shego closed her eyes. _This is your own fault._ She scolded herself. _You should have walked away earlier_.

"The deal was for one date, Princess." Her voice sounded harsh from tension.

"I know what the _deal_ was." Kim's entire body stiffened, and the snap of frustration was clear in her voice. The redhead twisted around and raised her head to look Shego in the eye. "I'm not talking about the _deal_. I asked if you _wanted_ to. It's a simple question, Shego."

The green woman froze. It could be answered with a single word, but it was _not_ a simple question. They both knew that.

_I could say 'no'. I __**should**__ say 'no'._ Then Kim would leave, and they wouldn't be left trying to make this mad, ridiculous relationship work. It would be safer. It would be smarter. They would both be better off. Kim would go back to her shiny life of saving the world, and eventually realize that she liked men after all. Or in the unlikely event she actually was gay, would find a woman of whom she needn't feel ashamed. _And I won't get my heart broken, again, when she leaves me_.

"So ..." Kim's tone was less harsh now, almost wistful. "... _do_ you want to?"

She had to say 'no'. It was the only option that made sense. She'd have to be the world's biggest fool to say

"Yes."

* * *

**Author's Note:** I know no actual Vietnamese. I cribbed the phrases used in this chapter from a couple of travel websites.

I'd apologize for the name of Ron's new girlfriend, if it wasn't for the fact that I've been gleefully waiting to use it for the last three months now :)


	18. Slippery Slope

"Kim Possible speaking." The redhead snatched up the ringing phone in her room, clutching a towel around herself, hair still dripping from the shower.

"Good morning, Ms Possible. This is the front desk calling. There's a Ms Shirley here to see you."

Kim winced, shooting a rueful look at the clock beside her bed. She'd so giddy after her date with Shego, she hadn't been able to sleep, and now the late night was catching up with her.

"Thanks. Please let her know I'll be down in a few minutes."

"Will do, Ms Possible."

Kim hung up the phone and rapidly dragged a comb through her hair. She wrinkled her nose, wishing she hadn't given herself quite so many 'five more minutes' with the snooze button this morning. _Well, it'll have to do. I don't want to keep her waiting._

The redhead pulled on her clothes as quickly as she could, dressing for warmth and comfort: cargo pants and boots, over thick woolen socks, then a thermal vest, t-shirt, flannel shirt, and ski jacket. She stuffed ear muffs and a woolen cap in her pocket.

"Nice outfit." Shego raised an eyebrow as the teen hero arrived in the hotel lobby. "Get a buzzcut and you'll be quite the little butch."

"I don't want to be cold." Kim complained mildly, though she did feel a little underdressed next to the older woman. Shego cut an elegant figure in black jeans and a crisply-pressed emerald green top. A stylist black jacket was folded over the armrest beside her. _She looks amazing_. "I thought you said we were going to be outside this morning?"

"We are." The green woman rose from the couch where she'd been waiting. "I have a change of clothes in the car. I didn't want to wander into your hotel looking like a bum." Dark lips curled in a wicked smile. "Though I see that's not something which worries _you_."

"Hush." Kim gave her best mock glare. "Or I'll follow you around all day begging for spare change." Internally, her heart did little flip-flops. _She was worried about making me look bad!_

"I'm tempted to call your bluff on that, Princess."

"I don't bluff." Kim watched the contemplative narrowing of the other woman's eyes with some disquiet. "Well, almost never. So ... what _is_ this excursion you've been so secretive about?" _Maybe a change of topic is a good idea_.

"You'll see when we get there." Despite the hint of a pout on the redhead's face, the pale woman refused to give so much as a hint. "Don't worry. I promise it isn't illegal."

"I never thought it would be!" Kim protested. She glanced down, then peeked up at Shego through her fringe. "... I'm just not good with secrets. I wanna _know_ what's going on."

"Huh." A small smile flickered around the pale woman's lips. "I bet you were one of those kids who always found their Christmas presents beforehand and never had any surprises on the actual day."

"And _you _weren't?" Challenge grew in the younger woman's olive green eyes.

Shego laughed. "My parents had to hide the presents at our relatives' houses."

"See? We're not _completely_ different, after all." Kim gave a grin as they exited the hotel lobby, and looped her arm through Shego's.

"We're both impatient? It's not exactly a deep, philosophical connection, Princess." Despite her dismissive words, the green woman did not shy away from the redhead's touch.

"It's a start."

"Yeah, I guess it is."

* * *

"Wow." Kim stared up at the elegant building, with its towers and turrets. Draped in a layer of white snow, every window glowing with warm light, it was like something out of a fairy tale.

"It's called Chateau Frontenac." Shego explained as she emerged from the car. The green woman still wore her black jeans, but her elegant pumps were replaced by a pair of hiking boots, and her tailored jacket with a comfortable, over-sized woolen pullover. A flame-red ski jacket and an equally garish woolen beanie completed the ensemble.

"It's beautiful." The redhead breathed. Then her brow wrinkled very slightly. "It's a hotel, isn't it?" Her lips curled into a grin and she gave the taller woman a sly glance. "You know, it's only our second date, Shego. I'm not that kind of girl."

Shego shook her head with a chuckle.

"Sorry to disappoint you, Kimmie, but we're not going inside."

"We're not?" The redhead looked confused.

"Outdoor activity, remember?" Shego led the way to the left, following the wall of the hotel. "I just parked out front because the view's so good. What we're here for, is _this_." The former villainess gestured as the two women reached the rear of the building.

The icy toboggan slide curved past them, the summit towering nearly twenty-five stories above the base. Dark-clad figures struggled up the hill alongside the ramp, dragging their sleds behind them.

"Oh wow." Kim's eyes grew wide.

"You're using that word a lot today." Shego grinned, then let out a grunt of surprise as she found herself enthusiastically hugged by a gleeful redhead.

"This is going to be _so_ cool!" Kim exclaimed, releasing the hug, but grabbing Shego's arm, instead. She watched as a sled whipped past them, the squeals of its riders echoing in its wake. "How fast can we go?"

"They say you can hit sixty miles an hour." The green woman grinned. _Kimmie's really excited_. "You know, Princess ... you've been in space, rocket-bladed up the sides of buildings, and jumped out of airplanes ... I was worried tobogganing would feel a bit tame."

"It's different." Kim waved away the comparison. "That was for missions. This is for _fun_."

The two women hired their sled, Shego paying their first ride fee, then began the slow tramp up to the summit of the ramp.

"This is one part of the process I could happily skip." Shego grumbled, prompting a laugh and a gentle nudge from Kim.

"Oh come on, doesn't all this work make the final reward all the sweeter?"

"No. It just makes me sweaty."

"Sounds like a win-win situation to me."

"_Kimberley Anne Possible!_" Shego pretended to be shocked, stifling a grin as the redhead flushed in embarrassment over her own comment. "You used to be such a _nice_ girl."

"It's not my fault, your honor." Kim rallied, bumping Shego gently with her shoulder. "I fell in with a bad crowd."

The green woman's next quip died on her lips, and she merely grunted.

"Shego?" The redhead sensed the other woman's change in mood. "What's the matter?"

"It's good to know how you really feel about me." _That's bullshit, and you know it._

"I was _kidding_, Shego."

"Perhaps you shouldn't be." The truth bubbled out of the green woman. "I've spent the last ten years breaking laws in a dozen different countries and helping a blue whack-job try to take over the world. And you, you're –"

"A compulsive over-achiever with a messiah complex?"

Shego blinked.

"Not exactly what I was going to say." The pale woman admitted.

"You can thank Dominique for that little observation." The redhead did not appear offended by the appraisal. "When I was freaking out about getting a seventeen in one of my classes."

"A seventeen?"

"It's like a B+."

"Huh." Shego pretended to think as they yanked the sled over a small rise in the path. "Dominique may have a point."

"So ..." The teen hero glanced at her companion out of the corner of her eyes. "We okay?"

"Yeah, we're okay."

"Cool. Say ... how about we make a deal?" Kim offered. "How about we agree that the past is the past and leave it there? You've been legally pardoned of all your crimes. If the courts won't hold them against you, I don't think either of us, should, either."

"You know ... other people won't be so forgiving."

"Other people aren't involved in this relationship. I'm _definitely_ not _that_ kind of girl." Kim's exaggerated look of outrage startled a burst of laughter from the older woman.

"Okay, okay." Shego managed to get herself under control and raised one hand in surrender, the other still gripping the reins of the sled. "So what are we forgiving about _your_ past? Being an insufferable goody-goody with a stick up her butt?"

"Something like that." The redhead grinned, then stuck out her tongue. "Hate you!"

"Hate you too, Pumpkin." The green woman rolled her eyes, unable to suppress a grin of her own.

"So ..." Kim said with obviously assumed nonchalance, as they neared the top of the hill. "Now we've decided to focus only on the future ... what are your plans?"

"I don't really have any." The green woman shrugged. Catching a quizzical look on the redhead's face, she shrugged. "I'm serious, Kimmie. I bet you're the kind of woman who makes checklists of things she has to do. They're probably even color-coded."

"I don't _color-code_ them." Kim's weak protest drew another chuckle from the former thief.

"Well, I don't make them. I wake up each day and make it up as I go along."

"I wasn't looking for an item by item list." The teen hero clarified, as they waited their turn at the top of the slide. "Just the major highlights ... you know, what you want out of life?"

"Hmm. Other than you in a French maid outfit?"

"Pervert." Kim smacked Shego lightly on the arm. "Okay, let's try being specific. How about: are you going to get a job?"

"Hell no."

"Okay." Kim laughed. "Well, are you planning to stay in Montreal?"

"Unless there's a reason to leave." Shego shrugged, then helped the younger woman to maneuver their sled into position at the top of the ramp. The green woman stared at the vehicle thoughtfully. "Do you want to get in first, or shall I?"

"I'll get in first." Kim volunteered. "It'll be easier for you to wrap your legs around me than the other way 'round."

"Probably." Shego gave the redhead a salacious look. "But it'd be fun to try both."

Kim gave a squeak of surprise, then clapped a hand over her mouth, turning bright red with embarrassment.

"_Shego!_" The teen hero hissed, smacking the laughing green woman on the arm for the second time in as many minutes.

"Kimmie!" The dark-haired thief gestured for her companion to step into the sled. Still red-faced, Kim complied, then gave a little gasp as Shego slid in behind her, wrapping her long arms and legs around the smaller woman. "Huh. Someone's heart is beating fast. You're not scared of a little toboggan ride, are you?"

"Shego?"

"Yes, Kimmie?"

"Hold on tight." The redhead bunched her arms, then thrusting forward with all her strength. The toboggan lurched, tipped over the crest of the hill, and began its precipitous descent down the slope, the green woman's yelp of surprise echoing behind it.

"Woo!" Kim exclaimed at the end of their sixth trip down the slide. "I think that was the fastest we've gone yet."

"It was fun." Shego agreed, as she extricated herself from the toboggan and stood. "So, tobogganing was a good call?"

To the green woman's surprise, the redhead's response came not verbally, but physically, as two warm arms wrapped around her middle and a cold cheek pressed against the back of her neck.

"It was a great choice." Kim's breath tickled the green woman's ear. "Thanks."

"Wow, Pumpkin." Shego turned in the other woman's embrace, leaning back a little so she could meet the shorter woman's eyes. "I gotta say, the PDA is welcome, if a little unexpected."

"Well, I got a little uptight earlier, and I thought I should make up for it." Kim glanced down, then back up again. "Though some to think of it, you _were_ teasing me."

"If you can't stand the heat ..."

"Roll in the snow?"

"What?" Shego frowned in confusion, then yelped as her ankle was hooked from behind and yanked forward. She stumbled backward, off-balance in the snow, her arms pin-wheeling. For a second, she almost regained her footing ...

... and then Kim reached out and gently shoved her on the shoulder.

"Ack!" The green woman felt herself topple past the point of no return, the narrowed eyes catching the dancing laughter in Kim's face. _Oh no, Princess. I'm not going down alone_. Shego's flailing left hand caught onto the redhead's right arm, yanking the smaller woman off her feet as the former thief finally lost her battle with gravity.

"Oof!" The two women toppled into the snow, throwing up a flurry of white powder.

"I'm gonna get you for that, Princess!" Shego twisted her body, rolling on top of Kim and straddling the smaller woman.

"Wanna bet?" The redhead scooped up a handful of snow and hurled it into the green woman's face. As Shego sputtered and wiped her eyes, the teen hero bucked her hips, throwing the former thief into a nearby snowdrift. "Give up, Shego?" Kim asked, as she flipped to her feet.

"Not on your life, Princess!" With a throaty growl, the pale woman launched herself at the teen hero, the two of them tumbling into the snow once more, then rolling down the embankment beside the toboggan ramp, before crashing into the thick drift of snow at the bottom.

"Ha!" Kim crowed, kneeling with her calves over the green woman's thighs and her hands holding Shego's wrists flat against the icy ground. The two women's faces hung mere inches apart, both of them breathing heavily from the struggle. "Gotcha!"

"Wanna bet?" The pale woman lifted her head, pressing her own dark lips to the inviting pink ones above her. Instantly, she felt the redhead's grip on her wrists go loose. _One move now and I'll have her! Mmmmm ... apple chapstick, this time. I'll flip her a little later. Ohhhh, where did Kimmie learn __**that**_? _Maybe I'll give this another minute. Or ..._

Someone cleared their throat meaningfully.

With what sounded suspiciously like a reluctant moan, Kim broke the kiss. The two women looked up to see a middle-aged, burly man, dressed in the hotel uniform. He gave them both a disapproving stare.

"Hi." Kim smiled weakly. "I guess this means our toboggan rides are over?"

* * *

"Oh! I want to see that!" Kim pointed.

Shego eyed the colorful movie poster with some misgiving.

"_The Magicians of Caprona_? It's PG-rated!"

"That's okay." The redhead gave a grin and bumped the green woman's hip with her own. "I'll just close my eyes in the scary parts."

A dark eyebrow arched. _Kimmie's been in a playful mood ever since we left the toboggan slide. It's kinda cute_. Not to be outdone, she gave the younger woman her best sultry look.

"Well, you know Pumpkin, if you get scared, you could always hold my hand."

A faint blush rose in Kim's cheeks, and the dancing green eyes lowered shyly, until the redhead was peeking up at Shego through her lashes.

"I'd like that." The teen hero admitted softly, her voice sounding husky and maybe just a little bit nervous. Shego paused, taken aback by the sudden hammering of her heart and the warm flush that ran through her whole body. _Oh man, I gotta stop playing with fire_.

"I'd like it too." The green woman surrendered, the words squeaking past her lips as the barest whisper.

Despite the softness of the words, Kim heard. The redhead gasped, her eyes widening, then tilted her head up, looking into the green woman's face. Trying not to let her fear show, Shego silently extended her hand. Tingles ran across her palm as warm fingers tentatively entwined with her own.

Heart hammering, the green woman headed for the ticket counter, already knowing it would be the best movie she'd ever seen.

* * *

"That was the best movie I've ever seen!" Kim enthused as they exited the theater, slipping her arm through Shego's.

"It was pretty good." The green woman acknowledged. _I am __**not**__ going to think about the way her breast is touching my arm_. She adopted a mock scowl. "And don't think I missed the whole 'enemies falling in love' subplot, either, Princess. Real subtle."

"Oh, yeah. I guess there was one of those, wasn't there?" Kim gave a look of mock surprise. Then she grinned and bumped Shego's shoulder with her own. "But yeah, you can be my Rosa, any time."

"Hmmph. Why am _I_ the girl?"

"Because the guy was a redhead." Kim used her free hand to point at her own crimson locks. "As you would say: 'Doy'."

"The girl was a blond! Do _I_ look like a blond?" Shego gestured at herself. "With _this_ complexion?"

"I guess not." Kim laughed, unhooking her arm from the older woman's and turning to face her. "Thanks for today. I had a great time."

"Me too." Shego admitted. She took a deep breath and let her hands slide down to rest on the shorter woman's hips. _Time to admit that I want this to go on. _"So ... it's New Year's Eve, tomorrow. Spend it with me?"

"I ..." Kim swallowed. The green woman's heart faltered. _What? I thought ..._

"Guess I read the signals wrong." Shego dropped her hands away from the shorter woman, fighting the hot prickling in her eyes. "Just do me a favor and give me 24 hours before you tell GJ where I am, okay?"

"What?" Kim blinked. "Oh, Shego, no ... you didn't read the signals wrong at all. It's just ... I have something I need to tell you first. A confession of sorts, I guess."

"A confession?" The green woman made no effort to hide her confusion.

"Yeah." Kim reached out and gripped the green woman's hands in her own, lightly stroking the back of Shego's fingers with her thumbs. "You remember back before the tournament, when you asked me if your being gay would be a problem, and I said it was 'no big'?" The redhead waited until she saw an answering nod. "Well, that was sort of a ... well, actually it was a drama, for me."

"You mean you lied." Shego's tone was flat.

"No. Well, not exactly." Kim shook her head. "The fact that _you_ were gay really wasn't a big deal. But coming right after I'd had my crush on Dominique ... well, I was still confused about my own sexuality. Here I was, trying to work out who I was ... who I could love ... and suddenly I learned something totally unexpected about you. It freaked me out, a bit. That's why I was so reluctant to share the bed. I was never worried about you might do. I was worried about what it might make _me_ feel."

"Why are you telling me this, Pumpkin?" Shego choked the words out, forced them past the aching knot in her chest.

Kim smiled; a brave, slightly tearful smile. The green woman felt the knot ease, just a little.

"I'm telling you, because I want you to know that I'm not afraid of who I am, now. That I'm not freaked out about you, or me, or us. That I want to be with you, and see where this goes. Not just tomorrow, but the days after that as well. I want you to understand, when I tell you 'yes', that _I_ _know_ what that means. That I don't make the choice lightly. That I choose you with open eyes, as well as open heart."

Perhaps Kim would have said more. Shego's lips didn't give her the opportunity.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Schmaltz alert! :-) Thus ends the penultimate chapter of 'Best Sidekick Possible'. Only one more to go. That one begins with Shego getting a nasty shock, and ends with her getting a good one. I figure that little hint ought to pique your curiosity!

The final chapter will be released before Xmas.


	19. Fireworks

"Hotel Montreal, how may I direct your call?" A woman's voice. Pleasant and polite, but impersonal.

"Hi." Shego propped herself up against the kitchen bench, already planning where they could go for the day. _I bet Pumpkin would enjoy skating._ "It's Anne Shirley calling. I'd like to speak to Kim Possible. Room 311."

"Oh ... I'm sorry. Ms Possible has already checked out."

Shego's world lurched. She grabbed onto the bench with her free hand, fingers blazing for a moment with a panicked flare of plasma.

"_What?_" Her voice sounded harsh in her own ears.

"She checked out very early this morning." The woman's tone became terse. Shego's mind whirled. _Kimmie's gone? Why? Did I do something? Was this all a game for her?_

"What?" Dimly, she became aware the other woman was talking again.

"Could you please repeat your name?"

The green woman paused. _Are they tracing this? Trying to confirm it's me? I should hang up. I should activate the Lina Mayfleet ID and get out of here. I could be gone inside ninety seconds. _But what good would that do? If Kim's trip to Montreal had all just been a trap, the redhead had had plenty of time to spring it. The house could be surrounded by now.

"Anne Shirley." She croaked at last. _Of course it's not a trap. Princess has just come to her senses, and left while she still could._

"Thank you." Suddenly the woman sounded much more engaged. "Ms Possible left a message for you." Shego heard a rustle of papers through the telephone handset, then the woman cleared her throat. "'Got called on a mission. Back as soon as I can. Call me or beep me, if you want to reach me.' There's a phone number here. Do you have a pen?"

Shego glanced down at the burn marks she'd unconsciously left on her kitchen bench. With a shrug, she lit one of her fingers and poised it to write. _Gonna need to replace the counter top now, anyway._

"Go ahead."

The hotel receptionist rattled off a number, which Shego melted into the surface of the kitchen bench. The green woman gave a preoccupied nod to herself as she read the digits back. She recognized it as the Kimmunicator's direct number.

"Thanks." Shego hung up the phone, staring at Kim's number. Her fingers itched to call, but indecision crawled up and down her spine. _**Is**__ Pumpkin running away? Does she regret what she said, yesterday? She left her number. That must mean __**something**__._

It took two attempts to key the numbers correctly. Kim picked up almost immediately.

"Kim Possible speaking." The redhead sounded a little breathless.

"Pumpkin."

"Shego!" Kim's tone perked up noticeably. The sound sent a warm flush through the green woman's chest. "You got my message?"

"Yeah. Big mission?"

"_So_ not the drama." In her mind's eye, Shego could see the redhead's nonchalant flip of her hair. "Frugal Lucre's stolen the Times Square Ball –"

"The _Times Square Ball _?"

"Yeah, you know, they drop it at midnight every New Year's Eve?"

"I know what it _is_." Shego kept a tight lid on a sudden surge of anger. _For __**that**__ she blew off our date?_ "Why the hell would anyone steal it?"

"He's holding it for ransom. Everyone who wants to see it drop tonight has to send him five dollars over the internet. And you thought Drakken's plans were dumb, huh?"

"Kimmie." Shego's voice sounded strange to her own ears, eerily calm and controlled. _I can't believe she did this_. "How long do you think you'll be?"

"I'll need a few hours to deal with Lucre, then a couple more to get back to Montreal. I should be back around mid-afternoon."

"When you get here, can you come straight to my place?"

"You, uh, haven't given me the address." Kim reminded her.

"But you know it, don't you? Nerdlinger would have told you, before you came up to Montreal."

"Well, yeah." Kim's tone had become a little uncertain. "Shego ... is something wrong?"

"We'll talk when you get here." Shego's flat tone allowed no argument.

"Uh ... okay."

"See you later." The green woman hung up, and quietly set the telephone receiver back on the hook.

Then she went upstairs and beat the punching bag into submission.

* * *

Nervousness was not an emotion with which Kim Possible had much experience. She found she didn't much like it. She'd been able to push it to the back of her mind while she was busy catching Frugal Lucre ... but with the world's cheapest villain back in custody, the redhead couldn't help replaying Shego's phone call in her mind; over and over and over again.

The redhead paused at the gate to Shego's home. It was not what she had expected: a tidy two-story home with an equally tidy front garden, bounded by a white picket fence. The teen had expected something a lot more ostentatious, perhaps bristling with razor-wire and security systems. _But then, that would kinda ruin the whole 'in hiding' thing. _

_This is __**so**__ the drama._ The green woman had seemed distant when she called. Kim couldn't shake the feeling she'd done something to upset the former thief. _Was it what I said last night? Did I make this all too much for her? But I had to let her know how I feel. I have to know she knows what it means to me before we ..._

There was a flicker of movement through the cottage window. Kim sighed. _Time to stop lurking outside like a crazy stalker person and find out what's the matter_.

The redhead swung open the gate and walked up the gravel path, watching as the door opened before she reached it. Shego stood just inside the entrance. Although dressed casually; a pair of slacks and a loose-fitting shirt; the green woman looked tense.

_Remember, Kim: no babbling._

"Hi." The redhead mustered a smile, feeling disheartened when it wasn't returned. "Nice place. I like that you painted the gables green. Cute touch. And it seems like you're in a nice neighborhood."

_Babbling!_

"Come in, Pumpkin." Shego stood aside, allowing Kim to enter the house. The interior was more modern than the exterior suggested: open-plan, with white-washed walls, gleaming tile floors, and squared-off furniture in bold colors. "Take a seat." The green woman gestured at the couch.

"No." Instead of sitting, Kim reached out and hooked Shego's fingers with her own. "Not until you tell me what's wrong."

The green woman inhaled, her already drawn expression becoming pensive.

"Look ... it's nothing. Let's just forget about it."

"It's _not_ nothing." The redhead gently squeezed the other woman's hand. "I've upset you, Shego. You need to tell me why. Otherwise what's to stop me doing it again?"

"You're sure?" Shego wait for the redhead's nod, then slipped her fingers free of Kim's, and ran her hands through her hair. Realizing she was stalling, she sighed. "Yesterday, you told me that if you agreed to keep seeing me ... that it would mean something. Something big. That you were serious about us. About there _being_ an 'us'. Did you mean it?"

"What?" Kim was stunned by the question. "Yes! Of course!"

"Then why would you think it was okay to blow off our plans for the day?" The pale woman folded her arms, closing herself off from the redhead.

"I –"

Now that Shego had started talking, the words wouldn't stop.

"You said to call at nine, and then we'd spend the whole day together. I called ... but you were gone." Shego's voiced cracked a little on the last word.

"I had a mission!" The teen hero exclaimed.

The green woman bit her lip, trying to settle her emotions. Finally, she spoke again.

"When you were dating Stoppable ... did you blow off dates for missions then ... as well?"

"Well ... a few times." The younger woman admitted, now folding her own arms. "But Ron always understood."

Shego grunted.

"Maybe he did. Maybe he was willing to be your number two priority. But _I'm not Ron, _Kimmie. I'm selfish. I need to be your number one."

_She's not being fair. _Kim's hands were trembling with agitation. The teen hero's heart sank as she realized that she was about to lose the woman who had come to mean so much to her.

"Are you saying I have to give up doing missions to be with you?" The redhead's voice was even, but strained with the effort of fighting back tears.

"Of course not." Shego's answer stemmed the flow of misery in Kim's heart. The green woman sighed and rubbed her eyes. "I'm selfish, not stupid. I know that if I make you choose between the missions and me, that I'll lose."

"Then what is it you want me to _do_, Shego?" Kim spread her hands, helplessly.

"I want you to think about the missions you take." The green woman grasped the younger woman's hands, making eye contact with her younger companion. "I understand that if lives are at stake, or the fate of the world, then you have to help. But a mission to recover a glorified disco ball? I should mean more than that, Princess. I _need_ to mean more than that."

"The police needed my help ..." the explanation sounded weak, even in the redhead's own ears.

"_Please_." Shego snorted. "Are you seriously telling me the _entire NYPD_ couldn't find a six foot wide, twelve hundred pound ball that's _covered with lights_?"

"Well, when you put it that way ..."

"Face it, Kimmie. Some stuffed suit at city hall saw you as a way to save on paying a bunch of overtime." The pale woman sighed. "That's why they asked for you."

The redhead blinked. _Are some people exploiting me like that?_ More immediately important: _what do I do now?_

But even in asking herself the question, Kim already knew the answer.

"You're right. I'll call Wade tomorrow and let him know that there need to be some new rules about what missions I accept."

"You don't have to do _that_." Shego looked genuinely surprised. "Just ... when we've already made plans together, don't cancel them except for a genuine emergency."

"I want to do it." Kim insisted. She stepped forward, sliding her arms around the other woman's waist, and tilted her head up to maintain eye contact. "Seeing the way Kit was with Ron over Christmas ... it brought home to me that sometimes I treated him like he was second best. I won't make that mistake with you."

"You'd better not." Shego's arms slide over the redhead's shoulders, pulling her into a firm embrace. "And I won't with you, either."

The two women shared the silent embrace for a few seconds.

"Huh." Kim's exhalation tickled the taller woman's neck. "Did we just have our first fight?"

"I guess we did." The skin on Shego's neck stood out in goosebumps where Kim's breath had touched it. "And you know what we learned from it?"

The redhead gave a small frown as she considered the question.

"That if we talk about things, we can work them out together?"

The green woman chuckled.

"I was going for 'Shego is always right', but I guess yours works too."

"Hate you." Kim smiled, gently squeezing the former thief.

"Hate you too, Pumpkin." The green woman's strong arms returned the gentle pressure.

They stood silently, each of them knowing what the words really meant, but not yet ready to say so, out loud.

* * *

11:59pm, New Year's Eve. A million people were gathered in Times Square, with millions more watching the event on television. Amongst the latter were two women, curled on a couch in a house not far from Montreal. The table in front of them was strewn with snack food and DVDs.

"You know, I'd planned that we'd go see Montreal's fireworks in person." Shego grumbled half-heartedly. "Not watch this over-hyped nonsense on TV."

"This is warmer." Kim retorted placidly, her cheek resting on the taller woman's shoulder. "So what else did you have planned for today? Before we decided to spend the evening making ourselves fat, I mean."

"Ice skating."

"Ooh. Fun. Can we do that tomorrow, instead?" Kim put on her best plaintive look, then grinned excitedly when the green woman gave a casual nod. "Cool. So was that the only thing you had planned?"

"Yeah." The former thief looked down at the redhead, a thoughtful crease in her forehead. In the background, the ten-second countdown began to on the television, thousands of people chanting along. "Why? -"

"... seven ... six ... five ..."

"- did _you_ have something else in mind?"

"Just one thing." Kim smiled, tilting her head up.

"... two ... one ... zero!"

Millions cheered and celebrated as two pairs of lips met, and two bodies molded against each other. Neither woman spared the TV a glance. The kiss was long, and slow, and sensual. It was full of desire, full of hope, full of promise.

"Wow." Shego managed dazedly, when they finally separated. The green woman was now sprawled along the couch, the slim but sturdy form of the redhead stretched out upon her. _That was something else. _"I ..." She wanted to say so, to tell Kim how her heart was pounding and how much she wanted to do it again. But her courage failed. "I suppose now I really ought to be getting you back to your hotel."

"I haven't checked into one." Kim blushed, nibbling nervously at her bottom lip. "All my stuff is outside, in the car."

The green woman froze. _Does Kimmie mean ... ? Is she suggesting ... ?_ One look at the glow rising rapidly across Kim's cheeks was enough to confirm exactly what the redhead was suggesting. Shego fought down the immediate urge to throw the smaller woman over her shoulder and carry Kim to the bedroom. _It's too soon. She should take more time before we do this. I don't want to rush things and end up losing her._ The former thief swung herself into a seated position, then reached out with one hand and gently lifted the other woman's chin.

"Don't do this because I was upset, and you feel you need to prove something." She said, looking deep into Kim's olive eyes.

The redhead shook her head.

"I'm not." The teen hero said emphatically. "I've known since yesterday how I wanted tonight to end. That ... that's _why_ when you asked me to see you today, I needed to tell you how I felt, first." Kim met the taller woman's skeptical eyes without flinching, her own gaze open and honest.

"Are you sure?" _Right now, Kimmie wants this. But will she still want it in the morning? Or will she be like the others?_

Kim's answer came not in words, but in the soft press of warm lips open the green woman's mouth. Shego's resistance faltered, rallied for a moment, and then was swept away. She slid her arms under the redhead's body and lifted Kim into her lap, then stood.

"Mmmm, _tres butch_." Kim giggled, resting her head on Shego's shoulder and reaching out to caress the pale woman's shoulder. "Though I don't think this is quite what most girls mean when they say 'swept me off my feet'."

"Brat." The pale woman smiled, grateful that the redhead had lightened the mood. She dipped her head, nipping gently at Kim's nose, prompting a squeal from the younger woman.

"Hey! No rough stuff!" The teen hero warned playfully, her lips curling upward. "Or I'll pay you back. And I have you at a tactical disadvantage."

A dark eyebrow rose skyward.

"How so?"

"Well ..." The redhead gave her best innocent look. "You have your hands full, whereas I ..." Nimble fingers popped open one of the buttons on Shego's shirt, and a delicate hand slipped inside the fabric. Kim widened her eyes in mock surprise. "Oh ... what do you know ... guess I have _my_ hands full, as well."

Shego nearly walked into the wall.

* * *

When it came to women, Shego figured she'd done it all. She'd had raw sex, passionate sex and tender sex. She'd had mad sex, sad sex ... even hate sex. She'd had desperate sex and leisurely sex. Kinky sex and vanilla sex.

Until Kim Possible, she'd never had playful sex.

"Dang." The redhead mock-pouted as she slipped off the green woman's shirt. "I'd always kinda hoped those things were artificially augmented."

The pale woman glanced down at herself.

"You hoped I had fake boobs?"

"Well, look at them." Kim cupped the topic of conversation. "They're amazing. It's not fair to the rest of us."

"More ..." Shego lost her train of thought as the redhead's thumbs brushed over her nipples. "... more than a mouthful is a waste."

"Trust me." The younger woman gave a soft laugh. "Absolutely _none_ of these beauties is going to go to waste."

"Now why is it that I'm half-naked and you're still fully clothed?" Shego smiled, trying not to feel completely charmed by Kim's evident wonder at exploring her body.

"I guess I'm just luckier than you-eep!" The redhead's smart aleck reply gave way to a squeal as the taller woman suddenly yanked up Kim's sweater and t-shirt, tangling it around the hero's head and arms. "Shego! I can't see!" The girl who could do anything waved her hands plaintively in the air as she tried to wriggle free.

"But _I _can." The green woman smirked, running teasing fingers up and down the redhead's now bare flanks, prompting an involuntary giggle from the younger woman.

"No tickling!" Kim yelped.

"Awwww." Shego pretended disappointment, but tickling was the last thing on her mind. _Caressing. Stroking. Kneading_. _Those all sound more like it_.

"Hate you." Kim finally wriggled her arms and head free of her sweater, and gave the green woman a mock glare.

"Likewise, I'm sure." The former thief stepped forward and nuzzled Kim's lips with her own.

"Mmm." The redhead's eyes flickered closed as their mouths connected. Then they suddenly snapped open again as her bra slid off her shoulders. "How? What? You beast!"

"If I'm the Beast I guess that makes you Beauty." Shego smirked, leaning back to enjoy the view. Her pulse quickened. _Yeah. A beauty indeed._

"You are so damn sexy." For a moment, the green woman thought it was her own husky voice that she'd heard. But it was Kim who had spoken, and who was now blushing at her own remark.

"You too." The green woman grasped the redhead's belt, then glanced up at Kim's face, silently asking for permission. The younger woman nodded, and the former thief undid the belt and pushed Kim's jeans slip to the floor.

"Ooh, Kimmie." Shego let her eyebrows rise as she caught sight of the redhead's slender back in her mirror. "You're wearing a _thong_? Seems like Princess has a naughty side."

"Well ..." The younger woman spoke slowly as she stepped out of her denim pants, her words almost hesitant, as if she was afraid of rejection. "... I usually wear boy shorts, but they didn't seem like quite the right 'look' for tonight."

Shego chuckled, letting her hands slide over the younger woman's smooth hips. Leaning down, she whispered softly, her breath tickling Kim's ear.

"Trust me ... you made the right call. Though I gotta say ... the idea of you in a pair of boy shorts and nothing else _does_ have its own appeal."

A dusky flush spread across Kim's shoulders, then down her back, stretching from neck to heels and every point in between. _Oh my. Kimmie really does blush __**everywhere**__._

"Lie down." Shego whispered, nudging the redhead toward the bed. "I want to explore every inch of your body." _I have to make the most of this. She'll probably be gone, in the morning._

_Damn it._ The green woman inwardly snarled at herself. _Whatever happens tomorrow, happens. Right now, live for the moment. You're supposed to be good at that._

Shego explored the redhead's body with her lips: kissing, nuzzling and nibbling at Kim's velvety-soft skin. She traveled from shoulders to fingers, and from neck to waist, stopping at all points in between. Though smaller than her own bosom, Kim's breasts proved delightfully sensitive, and the pale woman spent a considerable amount of time eliciting many different moans and gasps from her new lover. But it was finding the younger woman's more unique erogenous zones that Shego truly enjoyed: the sudden intake of breath when her teeth scraped Kim's neck; the redhead's whimper when Shego kissed the inside of her elbow; and the gasping, involuntary rise of the hero's hips when the green woman nibbled the flat skin just above her thighs. Throughout the whole exploration, the former thief felt her own heart pounding in her chest, as she savored every moment of pleasure that Kim was willing to share with her.

"_Please_ Shego." The redhead whispered at last, back arching from the bed. "_Please_."

Pale fingers touched the sides of the thong, tiny flames burning instantly through the thin material.

"Hey!" The redhead yelped, eyes wide.

"Relax. I'll kiss it better." Shego's lips brushed over the skin where the silky fabric had rested. "And I'll buy you another pair. Heck, agree to model them all for me and I'll buy you a new pair every day." The green woman grasped the tiny triangle of material and pulled it away. She stopped for a moment, awed as she realized what she was about to do. _This is it: this is when she backs out._

"_Please_ Shego." But instead of the expected panic attack, Kim lifted her hips again. It was a call the former thief had no intention of refusing.

The redhead; and it was clear her hair color was all natural; was already desperately excited. Within seconds of Shego's first touch, Kim writhed and bucked, biting on her lip to stifle her screams of pleasure. Not that the green woman took this as a signal to stop. She continued to apply all her knowledge and experience to the younger woman's pleasure, driving her within minutes to a second, inarticulate cry of pleasure, before taking a longer, slower approach to the redhead's third climax. _I may never get the chance to do this again; I'll make the most of it, now._

"No more." Kim gasped at last, her sweat-slicked body limp against the bedsheets. "No more, Shego."

The green woman kissed the inside of the redhead's thigh, then slid up the bed to lie alongside her.

"Don't tell me you're exhausted already?"

"Not quite." To Shego's surprise, Kim leaned forward, casually kissing her on the mouth. The green woman had had more than one partner refuse to do that, after she'd pleasured them. "It's just my turn, now."

"You don't have to do that." The former thief offered. "Not if you don't want to."

"But I _do_ want to." Kim pressed a finger to the green woman's lips. "I want to make you feel as good as you just made me feel, Shego."

"Okay. If you're sure." The pale woman watched as the redhead rolled on top of her, then began kissing her way downward. Kim's path was not as leisurely as Shego's had been, though it did take in a full and complete tour of certain parts of her anatomy.

"Mount Bountiful." Kim kissed one peak. "And Mount Plenty." She kissed the other.

Finally, the redhead knelt between Shego's thighs. Kim paused and glanced up, an almost startled look on her face. _Here it comes. 'I don't think I can do this'._

"You're beautiful."

Shego blinked. _Did Kimmie just say ... ?_ She couldn't believe it. She'd never thought the redhead would say that. She'd never thought –

And then Kim's head dipped between the green woman's thighs, and Shego ceased to have any coherent thoughts at all.

* * *

Shego swam toward wakefulness through a sea of vivid memories. Her lips curled upward as she remembered some of the more vigorous activities of the night before. Without opening her eyes, she reached out for where Kim had collapsed, exhausted and spent, the night before.

Empty.

A cold weight pressed down on Shego's chest as she cracked open her eyes, hands feeling the space where the Kim should be. The sheets were cool enough that the redhead had to have been gone at least thirty minutes.

The green woman rolled onto her back and angrily pressed her fingers to her eyes. _Damn it, will you never learn? It's always the same with 'straight' girls. First they freak out, then – if they'll speak to you at all – they say 'It was just an experiment' or 'I never meant it to go that far'_.

Her self-recriminations were so bitter that it was nearly a minute before she heard the hissing and bubbling sounds from the kitchen. Then there was a soft clatter of crockery, and an equally soft curse. A tiny ray of hope appeared in Shego's mind.

"Kimmie?" She called, swinging herself upright. "Is that you?"

"Just making coffee." The redhead called back, still out of sight in the kitchen, "Don't bother getting up, I'll bring it to the bedroom."

"Okay." _Making coffee. That sounds encouragingly not-freaking-out-ish_. The ray of hope blossomed into a small sun. _Just remember not to make any smart-ass remarks when she comes back. You're ruined more 'morning after's that way than -_

"..." Shego opened and closed her mouth, trying and failing to say anything even remotely intelligible to the vision in her doorway. Her heart started to hammer as she almost forgot to breathe.

Kim smiled saucily as she stepped into the room, her coy look rendered all the more alluring by the faint blush that crept up her neck. She balanced two cups on a silver tray as she moved to Shego's side of the bed.

"A triple-shot, no fat, no foam latte, right?"

"..." Said Shego.

"Are you okay?" the redhead asked in a teasing tone as she set the tray down on the bedside table. "I know your brain isn't really firing until after your first cup of the day, but this seems extreme even for you."

"... where did you get that outfit?" The green woman finally managed to croak.

"This little thing?" Kim lightly touched the small lace cap perched high in her red hair, before dropping her fingers to the black choker at her neck. Then she ran them down the deep 'V' in the front of her scandalously short black dress, to the white satin apron hanging from her waist. "I picked it up while I was in New York. Do you like it? I had a little trouble with the garters ..."

"G ... garters?"

"Yeah." Kim grabbed the green woman's hand and placed it high on the inside of her thigh. "See?"

Shego's mind collapsed in a gibbering mound of hormonal excitement.

Kim smirked.

"I'm a little concerned about your reaction. You can tell me if you don't like it. I can always change."

_That_ thought galvanized the pale woman's brain back into action.

"Cupcake, the only one who's taking that outfit off you is me." Shego growled, grabbing the redhead's thigh and pulling her closer, until the younger woman was perched on the side of the bed.

"Okay by me." Kim breathed, splaying her thighs and pushing Shego's hand higher. "But I think you'll find the outfit doesn't need to go anywhere."

Shego's heartbeat raced even faster as her fingers found not the fabric she expected, but only warm, bare skin. Kim smirked again, leaning closer until they were almost nose to nose, their breath tickling each other's lips.

"I'm glad you like it. And I just want you to know, Shego: last night was everything I could have wanted for my first time. I'm glad I waited to share it with someone special."

For a long moment, the green woman simply stared at the redhead, the words beating on the inside of her brain. She fought them, but they would not be denied.

"I love you." Shego surrendered, feeling herself fall into those olive eyes.

"Love you too." Kim leaned across the last few inches that separated them, and their lips met.

* * *

**Author's Notes: ** And that's the end of BSP01. Looks like our two ladies have got on the same page (and justified this fic's 'M' rating in the process!). They still have to face more tribulations in the future, however. Like, oh, telling Kim's folks. How will _that_ go? They'll have to deal with a couple of pretty big surprises, too.

But I guess you'll have to wait for _BSP02: The Science Rogues Return?_ to find out what those surprises are. I'm not sure exactly when I will start it, yet. Might wait to finish one of my other stories before I do.

In the mean time, happy holidays, everyone!


End file.
